Tradition Dictates That You Be Welcomed... To The Coastal Zone

[infinitywpi]

CZCW Coastal Tour January 2014, week 2, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Fox Mask. I don't know how it happened, really... but I'm sort of the official 'face mascot' of the Zone. Whenever a big heel needs taking down... or being fed... I get elected. Even when I'm nowhere near the championship. Take tonight, for instance. The whole night, even though my example doesn't show up until halfway through. The show opens with Freddie Datsun challenging Dragon to a title match. These two had a good match back in August, so we should get a good main event out of it (D+). The opening match has Most Spectacular in another sub-par tag title defense against Team Lucha, this time against Masked Cougar and Capitao Brasil (D). I assume Velvet and Phoenix will be getting their turns eventually as well. The champs cut another promo against Team Luccha afterwards (D), and then I'm up. I put on a decent little match with Kirk Jameson... the kid's got talent, he just can't always use it except against the right people. He can't carry, is basicly his problem. I win with the Fox Hunter (C-) and then go into a promo against Andrews, telling him that the path to the title goes through Fox Mask... so at Uprising in February, he's going to find out how hard it is to walk the Path of the Fox (C-). Next up we get to see Rod Remus struggle between putting on a good match and feeling sorry for himself as he loses to Barry Kingman in a twenty-five minute match (C). Datsun hypes up the main event (D), and we're off as I wonder when we'll get the next Xtreme title match. It's another good match, not a great one, but a good one that goes half an our before Barry Kingman runs in and chairs the Champ for the disqualification (C). Afterwards, he sets the chair up next to Dragon and sits, delivering a promo about how Dragon is facing people he's already beaten... but he's never faced Kingman, not singles, not tag, never. So at Uprising, it's time to stop playing it safe, and start playing the game his way (D-). I thought the show was better than the crowd did, apparently (C-)... once again, it seems they were a bit turned off at the tag match, and the rest of the show just wasn't able to bring them back into it. I have a feeling the next show is going to not have that tag match, or at least change things up a bit... Show summary: Tag Titles: Most Spectacular (c) def. Team Lucha (D) Fox Mask def. Kirk Jameson (C-) Barry Kingman def. Rod Remus (C) Unified Title: Dragon del Arco Iris (c) def. Freddie Datsun via DQ (C) Show Rating: C- On the next Coastal Zone: I believe we have our feuds set; now we just have to spend the next month building them up. Simple, right? Right?

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CZCW Coastal Tour January 2014, week 3, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Jonnie Perez. I used to have a title here, y'know? I figured I'd always be hanging around the Xtreme scene... maybe even a title run with my brother. Now? I'm an afterthought. I get to head to the Midwest and job on occasion. I consider myself lucky when I get on the big show. Tonight, I'm lucky. Heck, I'm not even jerking the curtain. The first bit fo the night is Teddy Powell demanding a title match against Dragon, since he never got a rematch for the Xtreme Title when Dragon won it from him. Dragon agrees (D+). The opening match is Steve Gumble pinning Brooke Tyler in... well, a match I'm glad I'm not part of (D). Dragon then hypes up the main event (C-), and then I get called out to do the j-o-b to Freddie Datsun. And I'm embarassed to say, I don't even job well... hell, Tyler's daughter did as good a job as I did. I used to wrestle well. Now? My confidence is shot (D). A hype video plays to hype up Andrews and Fox and promises both will be here next week (D+). I spend the time wondering where I'll be next week. Powell then cuts a promo for the main event (D), and we movve into a tag match, as American Force faces Team Lucha (Ths time, Masked Cougar and Ultimate Phoenix). It's a better tag match than the last few have been, but given the talent in there... it should be much better, and ends when Cougar hits a Hear Me Roar on Jim Force (D+). Afterwards, Team Lucha promises to defeat Most Spectactular at Uprising (D). After that mess, we needed a shot in the arm... and holy cow, did we get one. Insane Machine took on Lauren the Lion, and this was.... this was freakin' awesome! I forgot how depressed I was for twenty-two minutes. This was some of the best wrestling I've seen here, and the best part? It ended in a double count-out (B-) and the two began a war of words and decided to meet at Uprising in a match there would be no disqualifications for... and then Cliff pipes up and says it'll be a Ladder Match for the #1 Contendership (C-)! After the performance these two just put on... a ladder match between them can only be a show-stealer. The main event... hell, after that, is a let-down, as Powell and Dragon try to put on a good match but neither one wants to look bad, and we finally get a Drago Driver after... way too long (D+). The main event was a huge letdown, and the crowd let us know that, but that was one heck of a sub-main event, and it probably saved the show (C-). Show Summary: Steve Gumble def. Brooke Tyler (D) Freddie Datsun def. Jonnie Perez (D) Team Lucha (Cougar/Phoenix) def. American Force (D+) Insane Machine draws Lauren the Lion (B-) Unified Title: Dragon del Arco Iris (c) def. Teddy Powell (D+) Show rating: C- On the next Coastal Zone: It wasn't our best match ever, but it sure was close... now, can we top it? And will we take away from the rest of the card to do so?

[FINisher]

That just proves that Powell sucks. :P

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Notes from the Homefront: Homefront was held in the New Mexico Armory this week, just so we don't have to do a Coastal Zone there until after Uprising. Other Notes: Fox Mask signed a deal with USPW, and so left PWM. PWM, in response, has made an offer to Masked Patriot. We've decided to consider them our kid brother, knowing that we can crush them anytime just by declaring war and making our guys pick a side. Mwuah-ha-ha! CZCW Coastal Tour January 2014, week 4, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Nobody in paricular. Just the show with some added commentary. Yeah, I'm getting a bit lazy. It's my fourth show in a row simmed tonight, and there's one thing here I want to comment on in my own voice. Tonight is your standard 'build up hype for the big show' show, combined with a 'use people who're upset about not being used' show. That's the problem with the weekly midwest shows -- people get upset they're not used. And yes, I know you can cheat that by making two brands... but that just doesn't feel 'right' to me. Tonight's show opens with Steve Gumble pinning Kirk Jameson, and I don't remember if we knew these two don't click or not... but they don't (D). We then get a promo from Aaron Andrews (C) and move on to our next squashy-like match, Insane Machine pinning Island Boy Apollo (D) in our second match in a row finished by a kick. Machinee then cuts a promo on Lauren (D+), and we get a tag title match between Most Spectacular and Team Lucha (Cougar & Velvet). The champs retain, as usual, and it's... now a good match, as usual (D). The champs try to hype up Uprising (D+), but I'm wondering if I made the right call putting the titles on them. Kingman cuts a promo of his own (D), and we get to the match I wanted to comment about. It's a triple threat match, Masked Patriot vs Rod Remus vs Andre Jones. Now, I didn't want to hurt any of the three, so I set this for a three-way draw after twenty-five minutes. Guess who complained about not looking good? Remus? Patriot? Jones? Would you believe... ALL THREE??? Jeezumcrow... In a way, I'm glad I unified the titles because these guys would be the Xtreme Division right now, but yeesh, some egos running around here... anyway, yeah, match is a draw (D+). Fox and Dragon cuts promos (C-, D) and we go to the main event of Fox and Dragon against Andrews and Kingman, forgetting until way too late that Fox and Dragon don't team well. It's still the match of the night, but that's not saying much, ending with Kingman getting the pinfall on Dragon by using the ropes for leverage (C-). Really dissapointing show (D+). We were expecting a worse-than-usual rating, but figured we'd get a C-... altho in retrospect, C- is usual for us right now. Show Summary Steve Gumble def. Kirk Jameso (D) Insane Machine def. Island Boy Apollo (D) Tag Titles: Most Spectacular (c) def. Team Lucha (Cougar & Velvet) (D) Triple Draw between Andre Jones, Rod Remus, and Masked Patriot (D+) Andrews & Kingman def. Dragon & Fox (C-) Show rating: D+ On the next Coastal Zone: February meanss two shows before Uprising. Ready for the final pushes? And are we ready for the falling Wresting Industry rating in the USA?

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CZCW Coastal Tour February 2014, week 1, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Brooke Tyler. I keep telling myself not to worry. I'm not exactly setting the company on fire here. And then I tell myself... I'm not even old enough to go out for drinks with the guys afterwards. I've got plenty of time before I need to be a nervous wreck like Lora is. She's twenty-eight almost, and she's considering quitting because she feels like she needs to choose between this and... well, a 'real' job and family. Most girls my age are either already locked into 'housewife' as a career path, or in college learning what they'll do for the rest of their lives. I get to do what I love, get on-the-job training from veterans and up-and-coming stars, and see the world... or, country, at least. Slowly. So far, California, Texas, and Minnesota, mostly. So why should I worry if I'm jobbing again? Nobody's expecting me to be winning matches right now. At least, not against the guys they usually have on the big shows. Heck, sometimes I even get a win at Homefront. And then, Peers tells me... it kinda blows my mind, and I just hope I don't screw things up. I get to be putting on the warm-up-the-crowd match before the actual show, me and George Wolfe. George is big in Canada, he says. Him and Kirk, are our main event if we go up there. Don't think that'll happen anytime soon. So, in front of a sold-out crowd, I get a win. It's not the best match... George isn't all there... but it's a win (D-). The show itself starts with Fox and Dragon in the ring, and Fox says that it would be nice to have his claim of 'the path to the title goes through me' be kinda prophetic, and Dragon says it would be an honor to defend the title against him tonight (D+). The opening match is a talent overload, a tag match between Aaron Andrews and Insane Machine taking on Lauren the Lion and Barry Kingman. I'm watching this match closely, trying to pick up pointers, and I'm kinda dissapointed at how short it is, as Insane Machine grabs a hockey stick from under the ring to knock out Lauren and get the win (C+)... where'd the hockey stick come from? I don't know. Haven't heard about the Gilbert Brothers coming back. After she revives, Lauren cuts a promo against Machine, reminding him that in a ladder match, she's just as free to whallop him with a stick (C-). Then I'm up again, but this time I'm jobbing to Andre Jones... and really, I'm embarassed at how bad this is. I know I'm still learning, but I should be doing better than this (D-). Dragon comes out and cuts a promo for the main event (D+), and then we get another tag match, as Cougar and Phoenix face Datsun and Powell... and nobody really buys it when they win, so it's not the best match, and suddenly I don't feel so bad (D). Team Lucha cuts a promo on the tag champs afterwards (D+), and then stuff starts happening. The unified title match goes nearly half an hour; Dragon and Fox do their best, but nobody buys a title change this close to the big show... and with this much time left in the show, something's up, and sure enough... cluster-run-in! Andrews, Machine, Lauren, and Kingman are all in there, and the ref is throwing out the match (C-). Cliff tells everyone to pick sides, it's turning into a three-on-three match (D), and we're off. Fox and Machine are seeming a bit tired from their previous matches... slowing down in their old age, heh... but the six-man goes another twenty minutes and gives much better action. I fully intend to steal that abdominal stretch variation that Kingman busted out near there end there... anyway, the match ends when Andrews facedrops Fox into an exposed turnbuckle and pins him (C), and the heat this guy generates is impressive. It was another in a line of decent-but-should-be-better shows (C-), and I totally blame myself for that... it'll be a while before I get on the big show again. After the show, I tell Peers as much, and tell him not to worry about me... Homefront is fine. He needs to stop using us still-learning folk on the big shows if he wants to make an impact. I'm not sure if he agrees with me... or if he likes me trying to give him booking advice. Show Summary: Andrews & Machine def. Kingman & Lauren (C+) Andre Jones def. Brooke Tyler (D-) Unified Title: Dragon del Arco Iris (c) draws Fox Mask (C-) Andrews, Machine & Dragon def. Lauren, Fox & Kingman (C) Show rating: C- On the next Coastal Zone: It's the last show before Uprising and the hype goes even more into high gear, if that's possible.

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CZCW Coastal Tour February 2014, week 2, Sunday West Texas Arena, West Texas, Midsouth USA Roderick Remus. So, Peers went out drinking with us one night. The guy tells some strange stories when he's drunk. He was talking about this other world where my brother was the Zone's announcer and I was a former champion and always hanging around the main event. He had all the details thought out... almost like he had a plan for it, but it was all stuff in the past. I now know why I've never gotten a serious, main-event-level push... our booker is bat**** insane. Or at least a really, really strange drunk. Oh, well. I'm hanging around the high part of the midcard, at least. The tag title run with Lauren was probably as close to 'main eventing' as I'll get, but hey... I'm getting paid. Even if I do have to drive out to Middle Of Nowhere, Texas to do shows from time to time. Take tonight's show, for instance, he said by way of clever segue. The opening match is a decent one, with American Force (That's Jim Force and Masked Patriot, remember) facing Steve Gumble and Freddie Datsun, and losing after putting up a good fight (C-). Kingman then tries to cut a promo on Dragon, but... fails, utterly. I mean, even for a rookie, it would dbe a poor promo. For a guy with as much experience as Kingman, it's embarassing (E+). Then Insane Machine and Lauren the Lion meet up backstage and run down each other's acomplishments and how they're not impressed with the other (C-). The next match is one of those "I can't believe he won" matches that the crowd seems to hate, as Andre Jones takes down Teddy Powell with his Blast From The Past in about sixteen minutes (D). Andrews and Fox Mask do... basicly what Machine and Lauren did, only with Andrews bringing up how the Zone has always been the realm of the quick and the young, and Fox is growing old... it's time to move over for the new hotness (D+). Then, i'm up, and I get a quick win over Acid II... who totally sandbags me and gives us the worst match of the night (D-). Cliff then talks up the tag match (D-), and we get the sub-main event, as Fox and Team Lucha face Andrews and Most Spectacular. It's another short-for-us match, just over fifteen minutes, and the whole thing ends in a draw as the ref gets fed up with illegal double-teaming and throws the match out (C-). Dragon cuts a promo on Kingman (D), and we go to the main event tag, with Dragon and Machine facing Lauren and Kingman. Very good match here, with Dragon hitting the Dragon Driver '07 on Kingman to show he can go over them (C+). Somehow, the Texas crowd eats this show up. The main event rocked, the other matches were decent enough, and even with my PoS match, they loved the show (C+). Maybe Texas shows are worth the drive, after all... Show Summary Gumble & Datsun def. American Force (C-) Andre Jones def. Teddy Powell (D) Rod Remus def. Acid II (D-) Andrews, Speedball & Sleep draw Fox, Cougar & Sleep (C-) Dragon & Machine def. Kingman & Lauren (C+) Show rating: C+ On the next Coastal Zone: CZCW Uprising 2014! Team Lucha vs Most Spectacular! Fox Mask vs Aaron Andrews! Insane Machine vs Lauren the Lion! Dragon del Arco Iris Jr vs Barry Kingman!

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God, how the heck am I going to arrange the card? I've got three matches that are capable of C+, possibly B-... two of which I think are stronger than the third, but the third is the title match... which should, by all rights, be the main event... gah... Such an agonizing decision... do I go with tradition, or do I go for the best show possible? And who do I think will pull a better rating? Welcome to CZCW Uprising 2014! February 2014, week 3, Sunday Gorski Ballroom, Southwest USA Nameless TV Executive Scouting Us For A TV Show. Let's Call Him Bob. Yes. My name is Bob Jones. I'm part of the marketting and sales department for (redacted). I'm attending tonight's show to see if this 'Coastal Zone' thing is something we could actively market and profit from on television. So I'm looking at this show with a bit more of a critical eye. I don't know any of these people, so local reaction and things like that will be a large part of my report back to Management. The show opens with what I'm told is two of the bigger names in the company facing each other in the ring. Apparently, this was not advertised for the show. The two go through their match without really getting the crowd involved; for an attempt to warm them up, it is not very good, and seems to be there simply to eat up time. The one called Steve Gumble defeats the one called Teddy Powell with a kick ot the head that looks rather impressive, but this is slightly too long for the end result of not really doing anything (D+). We then go to two people backstage, a man wearing a mask and a rather attractive young woman. They appear to be having a match later tonight, and are bringing up their accomplishments and making snide remarks about the other. The two have goo dchemistry and I could see them perhaps in a sitcom, which is a mark in the plus column for the product -- telegenic personalities are a plus. However, a minus for male-on-woman violence (C). The second match of the night is, by my watch, absurdely long... over half an hour, in fact. One young man appears to have no respect for anyone in the arena, the other wears a fox mask on his head and plays the role of the good guy. While somewhat juvenile, the mask does give him an iconic look that works in short burts for commercials and the like. The match, however, is long and does not keep my attention for the majority of it. Certain parts of the crowd leave to get food or use the bathroom -- that translates as changing the channel to me, not good for the ability to retain viewers. The 'young punk' wins the match by pinning the other fellow while holding onto the ropes; from the outcry around me, this appears to be cheating (D+). Next, two men in masks are backstage. I am told this 'mask' thing is popular in Mexico. We are not a Mexican television network. The two men in matches talk about their tag team title match. Unlike the first pair that spoke, these two do not come across as television material, although they have a good look (D). The announcer then says a few words about the main event. He seems passable enough; we would have to see about finding someone to pair with him; perhaps an attractive young female (D). The tag team match is next, and it is easily half the length of the last match; it is also much, much better. Although the two men in masks don't seem to understand what the other is doing, they have a wide array of visually appealing moves. Their opponents work well together and do their best to keeep the two in masks seperated, which makes their miscommunication more dramatic when it occurs, and leads up to the apparently surprise victory of the challengers after paired finishing manuvers. The crowd reacted very well to this; I believe taking about five minutes out of the middle would make for a very good match on television (C+). A man speaks, trying to get me interested in his title match tonight. He seems like he is reading off cue cards (D). Another man in a mask talks about the same match; which I cannot tell if he is reading off cards or not, his delivery is somewhat wooden (D). The man and woman from before come out, and the next match is a ladder match. I have to admit to not having seen this particular type of match before, although I am told they are quite popular; several times during the match I fear for the safety of the two people in the ring. These two performers know their craft well, and it shows; this match is as long as the second match of the night, but I would say it felt closer in length to the tag. This means it would be absurd to put it on television, which is a shame, as it is a very good match; at least half the match, if not two-thirds, would need to be edited out and I fear that would not make for good viewing. In the end, the young woman gains a victory by suplexing the masked man off the top of the ladder, then climbing down and suplexing the ladder onto the man's stomach before climbing a second ladder to retreive the contract. The crowd was extremely into this match, with several of them chanting something along the lines of 'best match ever' (B-). After the match, the woman holds up the contract and celebrates, and begins taking about how she's been away from the title for too long, and no matter who walks out tonight with the title, she damn well plans on walking out of the next big show with it (C-). I do not know who this woman is, but I will certainly call myself a fan of hers after tonight; not only has she shown athleticism, she has shown excellent speaking skills and could have a career in show business. A video package is aired, showcasing the champion and his challenger (D-), and we are told the next match is the main event and will be contested undder lucha libre rules. That's a check in the con column, unfortunately... as I said, we are an American network. This is another long match, and while not as poor as the first matchs, it is still far too long for what is going on. Both men seem somewhat hesitent, as if this were their first time having a match with each other. At most, I can say this match was very average, with the masked man defeating the challenger to retain his two belts (C-). All in all, I have to say that this product is not quite ready for television; the matches are far too long and of varying quality. I believe this company has some bona-fide stars in the making, and it appears they are positioned for main event status; however, at the present time too many 'big name stars' here are turning out substandard-quality matches, such as the first two match tonight. Which the show was acceptable (C-), it requires some retooling before it could be suitable for television, and my report to Management will reflect this. Show summary: Steve Gumble def. Teddy Powell (D+) Aaron Andrews def. Fox Mask (D+) Tag Titles: Team Lucha (Cougar & Phoenix) def. Most Spectacular (c) (C+) #1 Contendership: Lauren the Lion def. Insane Machine (B-) Unified Title: Dragon del Arco Iris (c) def. Barry Kingman (C-) Show rating: C- On the next Coastal Zone: With Dragon unable to get good title matches out of people, he's got to be worried about facing Lauren; will he be able to find a killer singles match somewhere within him to make the booker consider keeping the belts on him? And who's getting ready to leave the Zone... and who's coming in?

[eayragt]

Cougar wins! He's back, ready to slowly climb the ladder of success again.

[infinitywpi]

CZCW Coastal Zone February 2014, week 4, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Anyone, really. The last show of the month starts with a debut match. Harrison Hash takes on the debuting Xavi Ferrera and, twelve minutes later, Xavi gets the pinfall with a frogsplash. honestly? We were expecting much more from our new sign-ee, as this match stunk and makes us wish we could call an audible and re-book the show on the fly... (E+) and we decide to do so, by closing the game and re-starting in mid show. Xavi spits on Hash, and Dragon comes out to talk about how the Zone is about respect, and if Xavi isn't going to respect his opponents, then Dragon will beat some respect into him... but not tonight, because he has a match against Rod Remus (D). We follow this up with some good, old-fashioned tidal booking. Masked Cougar takes down Mark Speed (D+), Dragon cuts a promo while the teammates swap in (D), and then Mercutio Sleep pulls out possibly his best singles match in his Zone career as he beats Ultimate Phoenix (C+). This sets up the Coastal Zone Tag Team Title match between the two, both sides taking potshots on the mic as they rest up for a minute (D+), and then we get a tag title match that is almost, but not quite, as good as the one from last week, with Team Lucha retaining (C). Team Lucha then makes an open challenge for anyone other than Most Spectaular to challenge for the titles (D+), and we move into our main event, and find out Xavi is -really- not cut out for the big time right now, as twenty minutes give us the worst main event in years... possibly since we started this dynasty. At least Dragon retains... (D-). Show summary: Xavi Ferrera def. Harrison Hash (E+) Masked Cougar def. Marc Speed (D+) Mercutio Sleep def. Ultimate Phoenix (C+) Tag Titles: Team Lucha (c) def. Most Spectacular (C) Unified Title: Dragon del Arco Iris (c) def. Xavi Ferrera (D-) Show rating: D On the next Coastal Zone: Pushing the button.

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We had been doing so well. Through careful management, we had gotten our loss per month down to five figures in January, just $92k. We figured we could drop that into the 80s this month, even. But we overspent on talent, and had a loss in ticket sales... and now we're in the position we knew would come eventually, where we don't have enough cash in the bank to pay for another month like the one we just had. So, we hit the button. Coming every day this month, CZCW Homefront, like from the Midsouth... an hour of Xavi Ferrera, George Wolfe, and Simon Ice. Hey, if we can't figure out how to put on good shows, we can at least intentionally do bad ones to knock us out of Cult... I mean, how hard could it be to screw that up? Turns out, not very. After three shows of Xavi, George and Simon, we had fallen back to Regional size. It was Thursday, Week 1, 2014. Homefront was dropped; there was no point in building up the Midwest is we didn't want to be built up quite yet, now was there? We would keep the Coastal Zone in the Southwest, try to earn some cash, build up our bankroll and then start again... We had, for now, failed. The end results... we knocked ourselfs down to Regioal size, milking over thirty grand in profit from some horrible, horrible shows in the Midsouth. We also dropped down to #17 worldwide -- and lower, and Cliff will fire our butt faster than you can say "Is Pro Wrestling MAX hiring?" Our roster is now huge for our size -- we can probably try cutting some down, but when our expensive talent is the ones giving us good matches, it's hard to justify cutting them. One we didn't have to make the decision for, as Teddy Powell left us after we jobbed him out quite a bit after he refused to sign for under three grand. We also now find ourselves with several of our workers considering us their lowest priority. Which is, of course, bad. We decide we're going to make some cuts. Who do we say goodbye to... Xavi is our shortest-lived Zoner in history, even if he did help knock us down the ladder... Whippy had gotten overpriced... Justin Sensitive hadn't done much... Island Boy Apollo didn't fit in as a brawler, but Fox Mask didn't want us to get rid of him, so he stays... likewise, we considered getting rid of Eagle Washington, but BArry Kinman stood up for her... Harrison Hash had failed to live up to his reputation... On the next Coastal Zone: We try not to let things get to us as we continue to play the Southwest... our goal is to get to the point where we are making at least a hundred thousand a month so that we can decide to push back up to Cult. But did we just screw ourselves over on that "Must be as popular as you were when this goal was set" owner goal? We've got two months to build a buffer...

[eayragt]

[QUOTE=infinitywpi;564832]But did we just screw ourselves over on that "Must be as popular as you were when this goal was set" owner goal? We've got two months to build a buffer...[/QUOTE] I damned well hope not. Hopefully the South and Mid West gains that you've made make up for any losses you've made elsewhere. Eagerly awaiting Cult III - What can go wrong this time?

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CZCW Coastal Tour March 2014, week 1, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA A.R., Totalextremewrestling.com Columnist. Good evening, chaps, and welcome to yet another weekly column by jolly ol' A.R. As you all know, I'm vacationing in the colonies this week, specificly, the west coast as I soak up some sunshine and marvel at the concept of women wearing bikinis on the beach in March. And, just so I can charge my plane tickets to the website's petty cash account, I'm making it a working vacation by taking in a show of west coast darlings, Coastal Zone Championship Wrestling. I know, I know... 'the Zone' has been in a bit of trouble recently and everyone is all 'doom and gloom' about their future. Well, let me tell you something folks, if the show I saw is any indication... they're not doing as horribly as everyone says, but they definately need some improvement if they want to seriously try to return to where they were. The show opened with everyone's favorite indy lunatic Jim Force ranting about title shots, and Dragon Del Arco Isis coming out to say he speaks two langauges, and neither one of them could make any sense of what Force was saying. More ranting and banter, and it leads to a title match tonight (D-). The first match of the night was a decent one, with one of the tag champions Masked Cougar taking on Masked Patriot. Patriot is teaming with Jim Force lately as American Force. Remember that for later in the show. This was a good match, I timed it at about twenty-three minutes, and ended with Patriot getting the win by twisting Cougar's mask and rolling him up while he was unable to see (C-). Backstage, Force congratulates him, and they talk about being a tag team that holds all the gold once Force wins tonight and they win the tag titles at Spring Break Bash (D). The next match is your standard jobber match, as resident primadonna Aaron Andrews defeats Capitao Brasil Jr in thirteen minutes; this is the kind of match people are coming to expect form the Zone, not very good without managing to be actually bad (D). What is good, however, is Andrews mic-work afterwards; he has the crowd eating out of his hand and wanting to bite the hand that feeds them as he makes an open challenge for anyone who thinks they can shut him up at Spring Break Bash (C). The match after that takes advantage of the crowd's energy as the other half of the tag champions, Ultimate Phoenix, takes on relative newcomer to the Zone Andre Jones. Jones you may remember from the big leagues as... well, as losing a lot. Here, his style is a much better fit and the match is rather fun to watch, and surprisingly, Jones goes over as Jim Force does a run-in on Phoenix to cost him the match (C). Out comes Mercutio Sleep (I know, I know... who? Apparently, he's a former tag champion) to talk about how he's going to give a singles career a try, and tonight he wants to prove he can hang with the best by taking on Insane Machine tonight (D+). Machine is a rarity, an old man in the Zone who is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Honestly, with the mask, you can't even tell how old he is. These two also have a pretty good match, but it's a short one, ending in eleven minutes after Machine refuses to relinquish the mount position and keeps pummelling Sleep with closed fists, getting disqualified (C). We follow that up with the tag champions backstage, talking about American Force and how it may be time to fight fire with fire (D+). We move on to the main event, Jim Force vs Dragon del Arco Iris for the Unified Titles. It's a Jim Force match, so it's not going to be stellar, but it's passable... not quite as good as the last two matches, but certainly not a horriblee match by any stretch of the imagination. A helpful fan sitting next to me tells me that Dragon already has a challenger for Spring Break Bash, so there's no way Force is winning here, and sure enough... out comes Ultimate Phoenix. Force is distracted and yelling at him, and Dragon is able to pick him up for a Dragon Driver '07 to retain his titles in about seventeen minutes (C-). All in all, not a bad show (C-). The auditorium was sold out, the energy was good, and one thing is for sure... the long-time fans mean it when they say that workers come and go, but the Zone stays eternal. And yes, it's the fans who say that, not me, so don't complain. Time to go back and hit the beach. You'd be amazed what a 'chick magnet' an accent can be around here... Show Summary: Masked Patriot def. Masked Cougar (C-) Aaron Andrews def. Capitao Brasil Jr (D) Andre Jones def. Ultimate Phoenix (C) Mercutio Sleep def. Insane Machine via DQ (C) Unified Titles: Dragon del Arco Iris (c) def. Jim Force (C-) Show rating: C- On the next Coastal Zone: The build to Spring Break Bash continues as Lauren the Lion decides to shut Andrews up! If that main event doesn't give us a good show, nothing will...

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CZCW Coastal Tour March 2014, week 2, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA William "The Grand Avatar" Peers. I admit it. I screwed up. I thought I could handle things, and I couldn't. But I learn from my mistakes. So it's time to focus on two things: Growing the Southwest as much as possible, and keeping the Midsouth in position to get us back to cult with just a few shows, so that when we're ready, we can give it another shot. It also means I have to start paying attention to how often people want to be used again, and it means I... hopefully... won't have to worry too much about money in the meantime. It also means I have to start thinking about what to do with our more expensive people... and trying to wring bigger and better shows. I need to find a way to get enough income out of the Southwest to fund us at Cult level while we expand. Part of me is actually considering seeing how bad the burnout would be if I moved to two shows a week, but then I remember that most of our income doesn't come from shows, it comes from... well, not having huge payments to make each month. Eh, we'll see how it goes at the end of the month. On with the show! We open tonight with the obligatory setting-up-the-main-event, as Andrews is out to gloat, and Lauren the Lion shows up to promise to shut his mouth tonight (C+). With the two fo them, it's not long until we manage to hit a B- angle. Our opening match... well, I had higher hopes. It's Barry Kingman and Jonnie Perez, giving what shouldd have been a nice, sixteen minute action-pacted match that instead is somewhat plodding and boring, ending with Kingman getting the victory (D). Lauren delivers a promo about her upcoming title match and says she's not sure what'll mean more to her, winning the Unified Title or shutting up Andrews (C+). The girl can talk, you gotta give her that. Next up is one of those "Keep people happy" matches... unfortunately, it keeps the workers happy, not the audience, as Eagle Washington and Velvet Suarez team up to face J4, with Jackpot Jordan getting the pinfall and putting everyone out of their misery after eleven minutes (E+). Out comes Andrews to try to recover the crowd with a long taunt towards Lauren (C+). Our next match is... another letdown. Steve Gumble defeats Kirk Jameson, and I... am I slipping? Did I know these two don't click? I don't remember... but anyway, it's another below-average match for us (D). I'm hoping for a miracle on the last two matches here... well, I know the main event will do, but the other... out comes Mercutio Sleep to say that he learned a lesson from Insane Machine last week, and he's ready to face someone who truely represents the Zone (D+). Out comes Fox Mask, and we go into... yet another sub-par match, as the audience seems unable to get into the mood for anything tonight. We go fifteen minutes before Sleep snaps and starts ignoring the ref and delivering a Machine-style beatdown to Fox, and gets himself disqualified (D). As the ref forces him out of the ring, Sleep gets to listen to Fox monologue about how that's not how things are done in the Zone, and if that's the lesson Sleep is getting, then someone needs to teach him right from wrong (D+). And then we go into our main event, Andrews vs Lauren. Again, it's another huge letdown... but only in the sense that I was hoping for a B- match and I didn't get it. These two fight for an action-filled half-hour before the time limit expires and they are forced to accept a draw to end the show (C). The main event keeps this from being a horrid show, but it's still far below my expectations (C-). We need to do better than this if we're going to grow in the Southwest. The only solace I'm getting is that we're still selling out the Auditorium for the first two-three shows a month. On the next Coastal Zone: The build to Spring Break Bash continues, as we meet Aaron Andrews' opponent for the show. If that's not enough, another match is announced, giving us a total of four matches to hype. We're actually planning ahead!

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CZCW Coastal Tour March 2014, week 3, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Andre Jones. Hey there. Me again. Last time I did one of these, I talked about how I used to work for SWF before it was the shell of a comapny it was before. Well... now I can say I really do work for a comapny that's a shattered shell of it's former self. Oh, well... my paychecks don't bounce, I'll keep showing up. Unless someone else offers me more. Of course, I don't know how I feel about certain... developments... lately. But we'll see. Tonight's show starts with Dragon and Lauren in the ring, Dragon complementing Lauren on last week's match, but ending with, "But I've beaten Andrews." The two decide to find tag partners and have a tag match tonight (C-). Jerking the curtain is Aaron Andrews, which makes me happy. Facing him is Kirk Jameson. Kirk's got talent... and he shows it, as he and Andrews have a match that could easily main-event a show here. I actually want to see more than seventeen minutes of this... but Andrews puts Kirk away in that much (C). As they leave the ring, we get an announcement: At Spring Break Bash, there will be a three-way match. Insane Machine, Mercutio Sleep, and Fox Mask to determine who's theory of wrestling is better (D+). Backstage, Dragon comes up to Aaron Andrews. "I hate your guts... but I know how good you are. I want you on my side tonight. You do this... I'll give you a title shot after Spring Break Bash." (C-). I'm up next; I figure, it's going to be fun. Andrews vs Jameson was a good match, and I've gotten matched up with a fairly good luchadore, Acid II. We go out there, and for fourteen minutes we stink up the joint. I've had matches against luchas before, but Acid... he's different, man. Nothing we did seemed to feel like it worked. I think people are glad when I finally pin him, but not for good reasons (D-). I wish I was working with some more momentum than that, but I launch right into a promo on Andrews and how I've seen plenty like him in SWF... so I'm going to help the Zone by putting him out of our misery at Spring Break Bash (C-). Out comes Lauren, to offer me a chance to main event tonight as her partner. I accept (C). We head to the back as Andrews rants about me backstage (C), and then we get a tag match, as American Force defeat Speedball and Freddie Datsun in eighteen minutes of a match that seemds designed to make me not feel so bad about my match (D). The tag challengers cut a promo on Team Lucha (D), and the four of us all head out to the ring for the tag match. Andrews and I have already had matches, so we rely on Dragon and Lauren for a good part of the match, as we're going over half an hour in this match. Lauren is... the girl's a dream to watch and a dream to team with, she really knows what she's doing. This is the kind of match I want to be having more often here, and I think we send the crowd home happy... especially when Lauren gets hit with a Dragon Driver '07 for the win (C). All in all, it was about the same kind of show we've been putting on lately (C-)... but I'm liking the fact I'll get a big match on the big show. Andrews may be a prick, but he's good to work with, and we might even be able to steal the show. Unless something strange happens next week, but how often does that happen? On the next Coastal Zone: SUNNOVABITCH!!!!

[Astil]

Oh noes...

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... I really, really need to stop jinxing myself. CZCW Coastal Tour March 2014, week 4, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Eric "Masked Patriot" Lee. Interesting career I've had so far. I find myself yet again challenging for the tag team titles with an odd partner. I dunno, maybe this isn't the place for me... only one singles title for this many people? That's insane... ah, well, at least there's tag titles for those of us who can't seem to get over on our own. Nah, I'm not cynical. I'm actually quite the optimist. I'm also a realist. Anyway, tonight's show should be a good one. Heavy on the hype, but hey... I honestly think a good performance tonight means there's a chance we could get the tag titles. Especially if it frees up Cougar and Phoenix to do something with Dragon, Andrews, Jones, or Lauren. The opening match is Andrews and Kingman against Jones and Datsun... there's an expensive match right there... and it doesn't really deliver. I mean, it's not bad, but it's not good, either, so... Jones gets the pinfall to win, but it's on Kingman and not Anddrews (D+). Next up, Spring Break Bash promos from Andrews (C-), Me and Force (D+), and Team Lucha (D). The match after that turns out to be just as good at half the cost, as Mercutio Sleep gets a rather vicious victory over Steve Gumble after repeated Go To Sleeps (D+). Hyping promos time again! this time, from Sleep (D+), Fox Mask (D+), and Insane Machine (D+). We follow that up with an awesome match... twenty-five minutes of action between Fox Mask and Insane Machine! This math is, quite simply, what the rest of us should be trying to do... and it ends without a winner, as Mercutio Sleep shows up and chairs both of them, and everyone starts laying itno everyone else with whatever they can get their hands on (C+). Promo time again, this time from Lauren (C+) and Dragon (D+)... and then the two meet, and make a comment about the last match... and they make a joint decision that their title match at Spring Break Bash will only be for the CZCW Championship, because they want to see Fox Mask, Insane Machine, and Mercutio Sleep in a ladder match for the Xtreme Title (C-)! And that brings us to the main event, six-man champs-vs-challengers. Team Lucha is represented by Dragon del Arco Iris Jr, Ultimate Phoenix, and Masked Cougar. The other side is me, Jim Force, and Lauren the Lion. We... could we have done more? We keep Force out of the ring enough that he doesn't slow the rest of us down. We do a lot of double-teams and frequent tags. Maybe it's because we have to follow that last match, but... we're not making people happy, especially when I give a Patriot Slam to Phoenix after a chain of finishers from each side and cover him for the victory (D+). I know it's not my fault... that was one hell of a match to have to follow... but still, you can tell that this wasn't nearly enough to put on a 'good show' (C-). Just more of the same... we're becoming known as the C- promotion. PWMAX is beating us at our own game, putting on C-level shows without a second thought... On the next Coastal Zone: Spring Break Bash! Dragon vs Lauren! Fox vs Machine vs Sleep! Team Lucha vs American Force! Andrews vs Jones! And the news after the show will shock and dismay you... maybe!

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Pre-Show News: Ah, Regional Battles. Can't say I missed them. Last time, putting on C- shows would have won the battle. PWMAX puts on a C and beats us soundly. At least we're beating BSC. And BSC is selling out the Grissom and putting on C- shows, too. We're doing so poorly, it's starting to get to us... but we try not to get depresses as we put on Spring Break Bash. Especially sicne we made as much last month as we lost on average while Cult. Granted, we had forty grand in 'suicide show' ticket sales. We lost ninety thousand in merchandise and sponsorships, but spent two hundred thousand less on production, marketing and show costs. Oy. Now, how do we arrange these matches... and how much do we trust the guys in them... CZCW Spring Break Bash April 2014, week 1, Monday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA (Style change: The big shows will be done without being from anyone's point of view.) Your pre-show, warm-up-the-crowd match: A four-orners match between Acid II, brooke Tyler, Island Boy Apollo, and Jonnie Perez that goes about ten minutes before Brooke gets the Brooke Breaker on Apollo for the win (D). The actual show opens with Aaron Andrews ranting about the Zone and drops a bombshell... he found a developmental contract with RIPW backstage, and it had Jones' signature on it (C). Out comes Jones, and Andrews is using the contract to tempt his opponent into making brash moves. We go over twenty minutes, and Andre Jones, who was goingg to be the man to shut Andrews up to solidify him into the main event of our shows, winds up falling to Andrews' Flying Body Press, jobbing on his way out the door (C-). We get a hype video for the next match (D-) and mvoe on to the Tag Team Title match. Team Lucha, Masked Cougar and Ultimate Phoenix, have only made one title defense so far. American Force, Masked Patriot and Jim Force, have never held the title and really haven't worked much as a team. The resulting match is far, far better that it deserves to be, and while it's the shortest match on the card (Sixteen minutes), it's far from the worst, and the champs retain with a Phoenix Firebird Splash on Jim Force (C). Backstage, Dragon and Lauren shake hands and promise a good, clean match (C-), and then Steve Gumble comes out to the ring to complain about being left off the card. He's a professional, dammit, he deserves respect, he deserves title shots, he deserves a damn match on the show. Out comes... Rod Remus? "Hey, Stevie. I believe the cliche is, shut your mouth before I shut it for you." (D). Annnnd we checked this beforehand, these two have never fought each other, but their chemistry is terrible! It's twenty minutes of just plan suck, on the level where we should have put the pre-show match here instead, ending with Gumble tapping to the Remus Clutch (D-). We get a hype video for the Xtreme match (C-), and then the ladder gets set up and the Xtreme Title, now de-unified, is hung over the ring. Out comes Sleep, out comes Machine, out comes Fox, and let the action begin! We figured there was an outside chance for this to hit B-, but it doesn't quite get that good, topping out at a C+ for twenty-five minutes of action, and the man who retreives the title, and is the next Xtreme Champion is... Mercutio Sleep! Obligatory hype video for the main event (D), and we're into the last match of the evening. Dragon del Arco Iris Jr has held the Unified Title for several months now, fending off challengers left and right. Lauren the Lion has a history throughout the years as a former champion, so this should be a great match. And we definately get the match of the night, going over half an hour and ending with Lauren locking in a Figure Four Leglog. Dragon doesn't tap, but he does get caught with his shoulders down, and we have a new champion (B-)! Show Summary Aaron Andrews def. Andre Jones (C-) Tag Titles: Team Lucha (c) def. American Force (C) Rod Remus def. Steve Gumble (D-) Xtreme Ladder: Mercutio Sleep def. Fox Mask, Insane Machine (C+) CZCW Title: Lauren the Lion def. Dragon del Arco Iris Jr (c) (B-) Show rating: C ... we blame Steve Gumble and Rod Remus for this one not being a C+ show. Probably more Gumble, but really... Gumble's more expensive, so he gets the blame. But, we've pulled off a C show... it's time to do something that may be a bit drastic... but we'll string you along until next post. On the next Coastal Zone: She now has more title reigns than anyone except Fox Mask. What will Lauren the Lion do to kick off reign number four? Oh, and one question... what is it good for?

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Remember: We're eligible for Dynasty of the Month this month! :) (Hey, if Foley can do blatant/cheap plugs, so can I...) Pre-Show News Due to a desire to want to win the Regional battle, we declare war on Pro Wrestling MAX. We currently only share two workers; Insane Machine and Kirk Jameson. However, after losing Andre Jones and cutting Jared Johnson loose, and a few planned cuts coming up, we've made an offer to several of their other talents to try and hamstring them and leach off some off their popularity. We're also considering declaring war on BSC. Just, y'know, for the hell of it. Besides, we hear they like it rough. We also end our working agreements with MAW and RIPW, since their parent companies are free to offer developmental deals to our guys. CZCW Coastal Tour April 2014, week 1, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA The New Guy. No, Not Him. The Jobber. What can I say... it's a mercenary profession, and I got a better offer. At my level, I doubt I'll be used much here, but what the heck... I'm getting used tonight, and with weekly shows there's a better chance of being used here than at PWMAX's monthly shows. Tonight's show starts with the two best talkers in the company. First, Lauren the Lion hypes up her title win, and out comes Aaron Andrews, reminding her that she can't beat him, so tonight... a title match. And if the time limit is met... ten Andrews wins the title. Lauren considers this, and then Andrews says that if he loses... he'll leave the Zone. Lauren doesn't waste time and accepts (C+). Our opening match has Steve Gumble facing someone else from my former company, The Cannonball Kid. Although, here, he's using his real name of Sam Pratt. He and Gumble put on a decent match, especially for a debut, and even more impressive when Sam wins over the veteran (C-). That's followed immediately by another match, a Tag Title match as Team Lucha defends against... Rod Remus and Brooke Tyler? This match is... well, bad, and over fifteen minutes long before the champs retain (D-). Andrews cuts a promo on Lauren (C), and we move right into more matches. I'm up now, and I'm facing Jonnie Perez. It's a quick match, barely seven minutes, and we... we worked on this, we worked it all out ahead of time, and somehow... it sucked. I know pity applause when I hear it, and that's what Jonnie got when he pinned me (E+). The next match is an Xtreme Ladder match, and... wow, we must've killed the crowd, because they don't get into this at all. Mercutio Sleep defends agaisnt Barry Kingman, and after fifteen minutes, sleep retains, but nobody seems to care (D). Lauren cuts a promo on Andrews (C+), and we're into the main event... which should, hopefully, kick arse. It's good, but the crowd takes too long to get back into things, even with the timer counting down, down, down... and then three Suplexes in a row lets Lauren get the win with eight seconds left before the time limit is reached (C). Immediately, out comes Sam Pratt, telling Lauren he studied her before he came here... she's beaten everyone in the Zone at some point. But he's not from the Zone... and he wants her at Welcome to the Coastal Zone. Title or not, it doesn't matter, but he came here to face the best... and right now, that's Lauren. Lauren holds up the belt, and says "This is what says I'm the best. You want a shot at it? You got it, Squiddie." (C) The crowd is eating things up at the end there, and they're buzzing as they leave. Despite having a horrid match, I've got good feelings about this place... Show Summary: Sam Pratt def. Steve Gumble (C-) Tag Titles: Team Lucha (c) def. Remus & Tyler (D-) Jonnie Perez def. Raphael (E) Xtreme Ladder: Mercutio Sleep (c) def. Barry Kingman (D) CZCW Title vs Career: Lauren the Lion (c) def. Aaron Andrews (C) Show rating: C On the next Coastal Zone: Lauren the Lion vs Sam Pratt? Well, it's certainly new and interesting.

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Pre-Show News: Hrm. Despite being at war, none of the people we've signed have left the other co... well, I guess they get one week before they're gone, right? Pity we didn't get that in before PWMAX's next show... but they got a C-, so we've got the regional battle sewn up for this month. We can afford to throw in a match in Texas to keeep our popularity from plunging there from neglect. (Note to self: Schedule a special one-time-only tiny show in the Midwest as well.) CZCW Coastal Tour April 2014, week 2, Sunday West Texas, Midsouth USA The New Guy. No, Not That One, He's Been Here Before. Okay, The New Girl. Oh, wow. Like, I'm so happy to be here! I know I'm gonna learn so much, and this is gonna be just, like, so much cooler than working for that slutty BSC company. Tho I guess they're going more legitimate since our champion works for them. And I even get to be on the show tonight! I so hope that I don't, like, screw up... The show starts with Lauren calling Sam Pratt down to the ring, and they decide to find tag partners for the main event (D+). Then, we get the announcement that we'll also be having Fox Mask vs Insane Machine in a #1 Xtreme Contendership match (D+). But first, we get a tag title match, as Team Lucha defeats the reunited-for-some-reason team of Speedball and Apollo in a match that makes me feel like I can't possibly do worse than that (D-)! Lauren cuts a promo on Sam (C-), and then I'm up! It's a triple-threat match with me, Brooke, and Velvet. And, um... yeah, okay, we do worse. Brooke gets the win, but it's on Velvet, and I got to look pretty good for most of the match, so I'm happy (E). Cliff spends osme time talking up the Xtreme Contendership match (D), and it's time for it already. It's a really long match, like, twenty-seven minutes long, and that's the longest I've watched two guys in masks fight, but it was really good, and Fox Mask wins it (C). We get Mercutio Sleep coming out to crongratulate Fox, but remind him that Sleep already beat him -and- Machine... one on one should be no problem (C-). The we go to the main event. Sleep stays out, because he's Lauren's partner. Sam Pratt's partner is... Snap Dragon, making his return to the Zone. The match goes almost half an hour, and it's pretty good, even if Texas doesn't know these guys as well as the Southwest, and ends with Pratt getting a pinfall on Lauren (C-). So, the show wasn't the best... but I guess we're not trying to put on good shows here, or something like that (D+). Oh well, I totally don't need to worry about that, 'cause I'm still learning all this stuff! Show Summary: Tag titles: Team Lucha (c) def. Apollo & Speed (C-) Brooke Tyler def. Velvet Suarez, Maria Guest (E) Xtreme Contendership: Fox Mask def. Insane Machine (C) Sam Pratt & Snap Dragon def. Lauren the Lion & Mercutio Sleep (C-) Show rating: D+ On the next Coastal Zone: Back to the Southwest! Snap Dragon is back, and it's time to reveal the newest person who is making his return.

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For the record: By importance, we are the #4 promotion in the country. #5 is BSC. #6 is Cult-level AAA. In Influence, we're #7, being beaten by MAW and FCW. The American wrestling scene is kinda weird right now. CZCW Coastal Tour April 2014, week 3, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Sam Pratt. A lot of people have asked me what I'm doing here. Okay, the Zone isn't the best-managed company in the country. But for a flier like me, it's the next best thing ot the big leagues. Heck, maybe it -is- my big leagues now... I'd hate to think the high point of my career was part of an ocean-themed stable. At least I get a starring role here... I guess it's a tradition, big-name people getting a starring role as soon as they show up. Hey, I like tradition, so I'm told this is the place for me. Tonight's show opens with me and Lauren in the ring, agreeing to find partners for a tag match, when Fox and Sleep come out and propose making it a Champs vs Challengers match. Works for me (D+). The opening match that follows is for the tag titles, as Team Lucha successfully retains against Most Spectacular (D). I get to cut a promo on Lauren next, and I think I do an okay job of it (C-). Up next, Aaron Andrews defats Velvet Suarez (D-), and then faces Acid II and defeats him as well (D). Then their teammate and former champion Dragon del Arco Iris Jr comes ou and tells Andrews to stop messing with the rookies -- come Welcome to the Coastal Zone, he's going to shut Andrews up just like he shut him up in title matches last year. But for now... get out of his ring, 'cause he's got a match (C-). So far, the matches haven't been inspiring me. It gets a little better with the next match. Dragon del Arco Iris faces Snap Dragon in a Lucha Rules match. The pair are tied one fall apiece at the end when Andrews runs in and clobbers Dragon... um, Del Arco, not Snap... letting Snap get the win (D+). Andrews then cuts a promo on Dragon, telling him that he's no better than anyone else in the Zone (C-). The announcer talks about Fox vs Sleep for a few minutes (D+), and then our main event as me and Fox take on Lauren and Sleep. I'm sure everyone was expecting the champs to win, but after I take Lauren out over the top rope, Fox is able to hit his Foxhunter on Sleep for the victory for our team (C). I can only imagine what the reaction would be like if the crowd hadn't sat through the other matches first... Still, it was a fun show to be apart of, and Lauren and Fox tell me that's about how most of their shows have been going lately... nobody's interested in the undercard, but the main events keep the shows from being considered terrible (C-). I figure this is a good enough place to wait out the current downturn, and then maybe work myself back into the big leagues again. Show Summary Tag Titles: Team Lucha (c) def. Most Spectacular (D) Aaron Andrews def. Velvet Suarez (D-) Aaron Andrews def. Acid II (D) Snap Dragon def. Dragon del Arco Iris (D+) Sam Pratt & Fox Mask def. Lauren the Lion & Mercutio Sleep (C) Show rating: C- On the next Coastal Zone: Our last chance to build to Welcome to the Coastal Zone! Now with three matches to hype up, will we take the time to appease some of the folks who haven't been used lately? And... I'm out of pre-simmed matches. I know what I'm doing this weekend!

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For the record: I think, starting in May, we're going to do 3 Southwest Coastal Tours and a Midwest Coastal Tour. See if we can get our popularity there high enough to spillover to the east coast and maybe get into position to score a TV show before the end of the year. One that airs somewheere other than Mexico, and for higher ratings than 0.0. CZCW Coastal Tour April 2014, week 4, Monday Grissom Auditorium, Southwst USA Kirk Jameson. The Next Big Thing. Destined To Be America's Youngest Superstar. They used to call me so many things... now they call me another. Wasted Potential. At least Canada likes me. Here in the Zone... most of the time, they don't even remember I'm on the payroll. And then, sometimes, like tonight, I get a match with the CZCW Champion. Okay, so I'm a warmup for her before the big show on Friday... but it's a non-title match, which means I've got a chance of winning. The night starts with Aaron Andrews in the ring, talking himself up, when Mercutio Sleep comes out to say that, for a change, Andrews doesn't have the hardest match at Welcome to the Coastal Zone... he does. The two argue over who's opponent is tougher, when Fox and Dragon run down to run them out of the ring andd challenge them to a tag match (D+). The first matc doesn't quite live up to that, as Barry Kingman gets a win over Jim Force in one of those "Wow, Force can go for that long? ... wait, no, looks like he can't..." matches (D). We go through some dueling promos from Sleep and Fox... and Mercutio Sleep is -on- in his promo, refusing to let his 'new era' end so soon, even if it's the personification of the Original Zone himself trying to do it (C-). Even Fox himself has trouble following that one, calling Sleep dangerous, but unrefined, unhoned, and that gives him weaknesses (D+). The next match is a throw-away match as Jackpot Jordan gets a win over Steve Gumble of all people. Sure, it's a disqualification when Gumble refuses to stop with the beatdown he's delivering (D-). Dueling promos from Dragon and Andrews now (D, D+), with nothing really to write home about. And now, I'm up. After the last two matches, someone needs to get this crowd going, so Lauren and I go full-tilt. Nobody here really pays much attention to me, so I take a few of the fans by surprise and we wind up putting on a pretty good match. There's no interference, no odd shenanigans, and Lauren gets the victory (C-), and then gets to cut a promo on Pratt, tearing into him for thinking just showing up makes him worthy (C). Main event time. Dragon and Fox come out as a team and cut a quick promo against their opponents (D+), and then out come Andrews and Sleep and we go right to the match. A few minutes in, I leave the Green Room to go take a shower, and when I get back, I'm told I didn't miss much. It's a bit of a letdown, and people don't seem to buy Dragon as a major threat without the title, despite his history. Sleep gets the win after Andrews smacks Dragon with a chair and then dives on Fox, and the crowd is just sort of... I dunno, unhappy? (D+) That's right... I got the match of the night. That's why I should be a huge star in Americca by now, and not... wasting away here. But at least Canada appreciates me. And we ever do a tour up there... I'm so going to tear up the ring with everyone who comes at me... and it'll be a better show than this one, let me tell you. Show Summary: Barry Kingman def. Jim Force (D) Jackpot Jordan def. Steve Gumble (D-) Lauren the Lion def. Kirk Jameson (C-) Andrews & Sleep def. Fox & Arco Iris (D+) Show rating: D+ On the next Coastal Zone: It's the greeting that we used to make every week, and now make once a year! Lauren vs Pratt! Sleep vs Fox! Andrews vs Dragon! And we'll figure out the rest eventually. How can we screw this up???

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Pre-Show News: As predicted, we won the regional battle this month... and we're at war with both of our competition, so ... hrm. So we're still down about a percent from when we were at Cult. A few too many medicore shows, and then that last one... hopefully, this'll be one hell of a sh... .... awwww, crap. We scheduled the show for Friday because only Kirk Jameson would be working elsewhere that night, for CGC. However, we didn't even think twice about that when we got an email on Tuesday, saying Fox Mask has signed with CGC. One of our three matches just went out the window... we have the obvious replacement, but we wanted that feud to run next... so do we kick him in and try to salvage something, or give Sleep a random opponent and keep the Fox hype going for next month? Welcome to the Coastal Zone 2014! May 2014, week 1, Friday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Well, we may as well get the dissapointment out of the way right off the bat, as Freddie Datsun comes out to tell us Fox Mask won't be here tonight... he's in the hospital. It seems he ran into a brick wall multiple times out in the alleyway. So, Freddie is willing to step up and volunteer to take his spot in the ladder match (D+). That match happens to be next, and he and Sleep... don't click at all, making this one of the worst ladder matches in recent history, but at least Sleep retains(D). Sam Pratt comes out to hype up his title shot against Lauren later tonight (D+), and then out come Remus and Patriot to demand a tag title shot (D). The title match goes fairly well, and we realize we should have put more time into setting this match up than the Sleep/Fox debacle that had to be changed, and Team Lucha retains... although we're certainly considering making this the start of a longer feud (C-). Andrews comes out to badmouth Dragon some more (C-), and we get a filler match as Snap Dragon defeats Barry Kingman after a short-for-us match (D+). Dragon comes out to signal we're into the last two matches of the night and tries to cut a promo... poorly... against Andrews (D-). The match between the two is... well, not good. We're not sure why. But Andrews eventually gets the win and we're left somewhat dissapointed (D+). That leads us to the traditional hype video for the main event (D+), and then Lauren comes out to do a slight break with tradition and cut a promo before the match (C). The match itself... well, as we should have expected, Sam and Lauren just don't click at all, making this destined to be one of our worst big shows in several years, as the two struggle through half an hour of mediocre wrestling (D+). Show Summary: Xtreme Title: Mercutio Sleep (c) def. Freddie Datsun (D) Tag Titles: Team Lucha (c) def. Remus & Patriot (C-) Snap Dragon def. Barry Kingman (D+) Aaron Andrews def. Dragon del Arco Iris Jr (D+) CZCW Title: Lauren the Lion (c) def. Sam Pratt (D+) Show rating: D+ The next night, PWMAX pulls off a C+ show, mainly on the strengths of Insane Machine and Kirk Jameson, who we've forgotten to renegotiate with after declaring war on PWMAX. We now have four shows to beat that, or take a beating in the regional battle. On the next Coastal Zone: Well, plans to have Pratt and Lauren feud to a rematch are now in the toilet. We need to decide who's going to be next to try to shut up Andrews, and we need to decide if we're going to re-start Sleep vs Fox or go with Datsun vs Fox and move on to the plan we had for Sleep... This is going to be a bad month...

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CZCW Coastal Tour May 2014, week 1, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Fox Mask. With god as my witness, I swear I thought Peers knew I was going to be working up north on Friday! Between that and PWMAX putting on a great show... I feel like I let the company down. Peers and Cliff are upset and working overtime to figure out what to do... it sounds like they may dod something drastic. But, as usual, they aren't telling us any of their booking plans beyond tonight... and from the sound of tonight, they're getting antsy. The show opens with me calling Freddie out and revealing it was him who attacked me in the alleyway two nights ago, and I want some payback. Freddie taunts me and tells me that he'll gladly beat me in the ring... next week (D+). Then, to warm up the crowd, Insane Machine and Kirk Jameson put on a short little match, ending with Machine getting the Termination Kick for the victory (C-). I go on a rant backstage about how people shouldn't attack from behind, they should always do their fighting face to face, and call Datsun a coward (C-). Okay, now, take what I just said, and repeat it. Only this time, it starts with Remus challenging Sleep to a title match, poining out that in the last five years, they've only fought one-on-one three times... and they've both been learning in the meantime. Sleep agrees, but it'll have to be next week... he's just been told he has a tag match later tonight (D). We get a Tag Title match between Team Lucha and Most Spectacular, ending wit Team Lucha winning after a Phoenix Firebird Splash (C-). And then Sleep is backstage and talks up his past with Remus, and how in those three matches, he's won two of them... including the most recent (D+). Okay, now, take what I just said to repeat, and repeat it again. There's a formula going tonight. Andrews is out to talk about how nobody can shut him up, and how the Zone can't handle him, and out comes Sam Pratt. He tells Andrews that he's not the only one in the Zone with experience in the big leagues now, and Pratt'll be more than happy to make Andrews shut his mouth. Andrews quickly tells him that he'll get a chance to follow up on his words... next week (C-). I head out there for a tag match -- me and Remus do a one-night reunion of The Pack to take on Sleep and Datsun, who were just opponents two days ago. We have a good, fun match that gives previews of the two singles matches next week, andd end with Remus locking in the Remus Clutch on Sleep for the victory (C-). Afterwards, Andrews rants backstage about Pratt, and says he's got a plan to soften him up before they meet (C-). Okay, now... yeap, that's right, repeat the formula. Lauren says next week's turning into a big show, but she doesn't have an opponent... and after facing someone new to the Zone, she wants to face an Original Zoner... she wants Snap Dragon. Snap comes out to answer the challenge, and accepts... but says it'll have to be next week, as it turns out there's a tag match for tonight's main event... big surprise (D+). The tag match is Andrews and Dragon against Lauren and Pratt... again, a team who had jusst faced each other two days ago.. and this one breaks down into chaos after twenty minutes, with everyone wailing on everyone, regardless of sides, and the ref quickly loses control of things, then finally shrugs and sits off to the side until things calm down and Andrews hits a Flying Body Press on Pratt to pin him and get the victory (C+). Afterwards, Dragon talks a bit about how he disliked the match, and promises something more Zone-esque for the title match next week (D+). That was the kind of show we should be putting on on a regular basis (C), and hopefully next week is going to be even better. Hopefully nothing happens to... ... oops, I almost jinxed it. On the next Coastal Zone: Four big matches signed, one with more heat than the others, one with less heat than the others... and of course, we can hype some up during the show... here's hoping we knock this one out of the park, 'cause if this doesn't work, we only get one more last-minute shot at doing better...

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Pre-Show notes: Not only do we manage to re-sign Insane Machine, so he'll have to leave PWMAX, but we do it for five hundred a show less then he was getting before. Kirk renegotiates too. Sorry, PWMAX... CZCW Coastal Tour May 2014, week 2, Sunday Grissom Auditorium, Southwest USA Snap Dragon. This has a 'big show' feeling to it, to the extent that only the eight of us have been asked to be backstage tonight... the focus is going to be completely on the four matches that were set up last week. I'm trying to be on my best behavior... I pranked Aaron at the last show, and Peers... well, given it was Andrews, he wasn't too mad at me, he just advised me to be careful with my targets. The show opens with Freddie bragging about taking out Fox Mask and taking his title shot, and how easy it'll be to beat him in the ring tonight (D+). We then spend some time with Cliff talking up the main event (D+). The first match off the night is the Xtreme Title Ladder Match, and it's going to be the shortest match of the night; sleep retreives his title in about twelve minutes (D+). If that's the worst match off the night, we'll be doing okay. Fox cuts a promo backstage about how Freddie is a coward, but tonight, there's no attacking from behind... and then he looks behind himself, just to be sure (D). Then the camera cuts to me, as I talk about how honored I am to be getting a title shot this early in my return (D). Freddie vs Fox is next, and the match comes off quite good -- good enough to main event any other Coastal Tour, going just over twenty minutes and ending with a Fox Hunter, giving Fox the victory (C). More promos, as Andrews makes fun of Pratt for being 'Calamari Kid' (C+). Lauren then gets to talk about the main event (C-). We then move on to yet another good match as Andrews and Pratt tussle. On a big show, I would've pegged Pratt as getting the win -- shutting up Andrews would win him some 'face points' with the fans. He tries hard here, but Andrews just cheats him way around and eventually drops him face-first onto an exposed turnbuckle for the win (C). Lauren gets one last promo in (D+), and I head out there for the main event. Pressure's on. Peers and Cliff are expecting me to perform at my best. And I give them everything I've got. Lauren and I go full-tilt, tease some near falls, and I manage to break out of the Figure Four when most of the crowd was expecting me to tap. But a Dragon's Breath gets countered into an overhead Belly to Belly Suplex, and I stare at the lights for a few seconds as Lauren retains (C+). But the show's not over... here comes Andrews with a chair, and Lauren takes an unprotected shot to the top of the head and crumples. Andrews poses over her and grabs the CZCW title, saying that since he's undefeated, he's taking the belt... if she wants it back, it'll have to be at Battle At The Beach (C-). Show Summary: Xtreme Title: Mercutio Sleep (c) def. Rod Remus (D+) Fox Mask def. Freddie Datsun (C) Aaron Andrews def. Sam Pratt (C) CZCW Title: Lauren the Lion (c) def. Snap Dragon (C+) Show Rating.... only a C. On the next Coastal Zone: Only a C when we were hoping for a C+. Even more worrying, we failed to sell out the Grissom -- fan burnout is starting to set in. But will the Midwest be willing to help us hype up Lauren vs Andrews?

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Because I love you, we'll do two shows tonight. CZCW Coastal Tour May 2014, week 3, Sunday Some hick town in the Midwest. Cliff Anderson. "We'll make more money in Texas," I told him. "We dont' care about money right now," he told me. Right then, right there, I told him that we go into debt in the next two years, he's fired. Says he has a plan for 'growing the company'. Yeah, I swallowed that line over six years ago, and we're right back where we were when we started, both size-wise and money-wise. This guy's got to be a con artist. But, well, we ain't broke yet, so I guess I'll let him keep working. Still, this is the smallest crowd the main roster has worked in front off in a long time. Sure, it's a sell-out, but it's a sell-out of three hundred. We open with the standard 'set up the main event' bit, setting up a tag match between Lauren and Fox (who is getting his title shot at Battle at the Beach) and Andrews and Sleep (D+). The opening match... sucks, as Barry Kingman wins a triple-threat match agaisnt our jobbers, Simon Ice and George Wolfe (E+). I try to hype up the Sleep/Fox match a bit, but this bar crowd doesn't seem too interested (D-). The next match gets the same reaction, as Team Lucha retains their tag titles against Jonnie Perez and Jim Force (C-). I'm doubting our ability to have a good match with this crowd. Sleep tries to cut a promo to hype BatB (D-), and then we try to change things up with a women's four-corners match. Maria Guest, Velvery Suarez, Eagle Washington, and our winner, Brooke Tyler, manage to put on just as good a match as the last one... which somewhat surprizes me, but then, the Midwest seems to like Brooke for some reason (D-). Andrews then comes out and cuts one hell of a promo hyping BatB, saying the CZCW Title wil remainin his posession until that show and, when he defeats Lauren, it will never be seen again (C+). Our sub-main event is a 'pander to the crowds' match with two famous guys, as Steve Gumble does the j-o-b to Sam Pratt in a decent-for-here match (D+). Fox and Lauren then hype up their BatB matches (D-, D+), and we head into the main event. The main event, amazingly, doesn't suck, but suffers from the crowd not really knowing Fox, Sleep, or Lauren... but as a main event, it does the job, and Lauren gets the victory with a Belly to Belly over Andrews (C-). Afterwards, Andrews and Sleep do the beat-down on their opponents (E, D+). All in all, it's not a horrible show, especially given where it is... I remember the day when shows like this were just what we needed, so I'm feeling a bit nostalgic perhaps... perhaps I won't fire Peers quite yet... Show Summary: Barry Kingman def George Wolfe, Simon Ice (E+) Tag Titles: Team Lucha def. Jonnie Perez & Jim Force (D-) Brooke Tyler def. Velvet Suarez, Eagle Washington, Maria Guest (D-) Sam Pratt def. Steve Gumble (D+) Lauren the Lion & Fox Mask def. Aaron Andrews & Mercutio Sleep (C-) Show rating: D+ On the next Coastal Zone: The last show before Battle at the Beach. Will we avoid scheduling conflicts this time?