sebsplex Posted August 2, 2011 Share Posted August 2, 2011 Overview: This story begins in June 2010. Total Championship Wrestling has been pushed to the brink of destruction by a cataclysmic event that took place on their watch in 2009. The details of how exactly this scenario came to be will be revealed a little bit at a time, but for now this diary will face forwards, moving quickly towards the first event, an episode of TCW's new show format that could make or break the promotion. First stop, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, Orlando, Florida. ________________________________________________ :: The Magic Kingdom of Total Championship Wrestling :: http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/LogoDisney.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TC1.jpg DEAD? NO, THIS IS MOUSE-EARED PURGATORY ________________________________________________ "You need us. Nobody else is going to give you what you need. Not with what happened." The Walt Disney Corporation. They created a magical place in Orlando, one where dreams came true. And for many people, perhaps they did. Chuck Cabot didn't consider himself part of that particular collective. Furthermore, he didn't care about such dreams, but he did appreciate that they served as a means of making money. And that he did care for. The jaded Disney Executive had worked for the corporation long enough to know better. It was left to people like him to effectively distribute the non-stop production line of crap that the Walt Disney Corporation churned out. An endless replication of everything that had even a modicum of success. The cheap and thoughtless products of a soulless machine. Not that Cabot had a problem with this arrangement, but the recent ventures he'd been charged with managing hadn't exactly gone to plan. Inevitably, he paid the price for such shortcomings when the next batch of projects were allocated. Anything even remotely lucrative had been placed elsewhere in the company, in safer hands. Of course, he never blamed himself for these failures. The cause undoubtedly lay with the incompetence of other people. Disney always surrounded him with morons. This was their fault. Regardless, the Corporation had handed him a lemon with the expectation that Cabot would make lemonade, but this wrestling thing... this was the bottom of the barrel. Jesus Christ. What were they thinking? "We will secure your television contract, provide marketing, secure permits, legal documents, everything... it's our prerogative to provide the platform from which to rebuild." Tommy Cornell remained impassive as Cabot spoke, more concerned with his own predicament. The sole owner of Total Championship Wrestling glanced toward the multi-purpose arena, formerly the Milk House and found it strange that his path to redemption could begin in an odd, multi-colored building. The garish exterior of 1950s-style property couldn't detract from the beautiful ambiance of the evening, although he appreciated the fact that the California Milk Processor Board, progenitors of the famous Got Milk? campaign, no longer sponsored the facility. He'd flown to Orlando with a heavy sense of resignation and no idea what to expect, but believed the meeting would be the deadest of ends pursued in recent months. Still, nobody said the path would be a straight one. It had been six months since the "Clover Fields Incident". All the glitter and gloss of Disney's superficial and fabricated world seemed inappropriate for a promotion now renowned for the unscripted and unconscionable violence that led to it's highly publicized downfall, but their willingness to do business was encouraging and frankly, there was no prospect of anything better materialising. "This is an unparalleled opportunity to build upon your vibrant brand and character properties by accessing Disney’s tremendous global organisation and infrastructure around the world." TCW was all but dead anyway. Nothing more than a collection of intellectual properties, redundant merchandise, lawsuits and meaningless (albeit binding) contracts. The promotion hadn't held more than a handful of events all year. Had it not been for the negative media coverage and small-scale protests that predictably accompanied them, most people wouldn't have known TCW still existed. Cornell had struggled against this tide of inevitability for months, but with each day that passed he'd been left with fewer options and much more to worry about. His cellular phone became an object to be viewed with increasing disdain, it's shrill ringtone often foreshadowed the latest installment of what had become a continual stream of bad news as the ever-increasing series of setbacks took their toll. How could they not? What happened in Clover Fields had changed everything. Their whole operation had been held together by sweat, duct tape and a lot of improvisation. They prayed it would be enough to see them through the darkest days of their six year existence, but it wasn't. The network elected not to renew their programming going into the new year, exercising a contractual option to do so, but by that point it hardly mattered. The exodus of financial backers, company stakeholders and sponsors had already begun long before they pulled the plug. And besides, the ramifications of that fateful night stretched beyond the company's various media and business partners. Previously visited towns and cities treated them like pariahs, hospitality evaporated and new rules appeared out of nowhere to obstruct their operation. He didn't blame those who choose to leave for doing so. The guys needed to work and when regularly used venues suddenly became permanently unavailable, the decision to quit was an arbitrary one. Those who chose to remain either did so out of blind loyalty or were simply sitting out their contracts. Regardless, nobody wanted to do business with anyone from 'that promotion on the news', and in order to find new employment, they needed to absolve themselves from the sins of Total Championship Wrestling first and foremost. The name, the brand and all those still associated with it were, it seemed, blackened forever. Which made Cabot's proposition particularly intriguing. "Your venue... will be here, in Orlando and with our help, Total Championship Wrestling will be not only the happiest place on earth, but one of the most profitable." Strangely, the Disney Corporation found the acquisition of TCW extremely appealing. They believed that wrestling shows in their park, specifically nationally televised ones, would prove quite beneficial. They made money, attracted visitors and kept people entertained. Furthermore, they saw it as an investment. Their way of tapping into that impressionable young male demographic. Of course, the giant media and entertainment conglomerate intended to apply their mouse-eared stamp to the promotion. The days of understatement and the deliberately-crafted aura of legitimate competition would likely be buried beneath extravagance and indulgent razzmatazz as their product evolved to incorporate more mainstream appeal, less gritty realism and additional sprinklings of comedy. This was Walt Disney after all. They were all about emphasising big characters and big set-pieces. They'd want control. Control of him, control of his promotion, control of the future. Disney's mandate to succeed could see him consumed. They would own him. Could he accept those terms? Could he really place Total Championship Wrestling in the hands of a conglomerate who knew as little about professional wrestling as he did about selling their dream-inspired crap to screaming attention seekers. Cornell exhaled deeply. "And what do you want in return?" Cabot smiled. One of those long, knowing, douchebag smiles. "We want you to finish what you started. Start again." Cornell said nothing as he shook the hand of his new business partner, it felt strangely warm and familiar, yet uncomfortable all the same. The deal had been done. Perhaps everything would work out after all. ________________________________________________ OOC Notes: Firstly, thanks for reading thus far. I reluctantly moth-balled my DaVE diary for the time being. In truth, I felt I'd borrowed too much and as much as I savored writing a continuation of Mark Cuban's exploits with a DOA overtone, I feel obliged to have a crack at creating a new project more of my own making. On a positive note for those who enjoyed the brief run of that diary, some of the themes and concepts will be ported across into this new venture and some others, touch upon my long-forgotten writings from Hollyweird. Why Disney? Seriously, do you know how many TCW diaries have been posted on this forum? No? Well I don't either, but it's a lot. A hell of a lot in fact. This promotion has been covered from pretty much every angle conceivable and by some of the best writers on the board, but never has it been as badly butchered and mismanaged as it will be in this project. Not that Disney and wrestling haven't encountered one another previously on these forums. The union of C-Verse and Real World entities isn't always an harmonious one I realise, but in reality, this is more a case of the Walt Disney Corporation being dragged kicking and screaming into the C-Verse than vice-versa. So in other words, this alternate reality exists in the default data and everything C-Verse related appears pretty much as you'd expect it to appear outside of TCW. This isn't intended to be a novelty/comedy diary as such. I can appreciate that many of you will be disappointed that the prospect of Troy Tornado vs. Mickey Mouse or The Syndicate vs. The Goof Troop may not come to pass, but that's not really the vibe I'm going for here. As to what I've changed in game; to take the Clover Fields timeline into account, this game begins in June 2010. The first month has been spent assembling a new look roster, filling the voids left by numerous high departures. Meanwhile, shows have been canceled in order to simulate the backstory downturn and cause a realistic prestige and momentum reduction. TCW has been dropped to cult level to a) reflect the current turmoil and b) enable me concentrate on a far smaller batch of characters and ultimately make this diary manageable. Originally I intended to use TCW's full default roster, but sadly that was just far too overwhelming for my bloated style of writing. I must also confess that I have utilised the editor to manually assign two workers to TCW, for whom I have specific purposes. All other changes have been made legitimately in the game. I'll touch upon these more later on. What can you expect? This dynasty will probably be somewhat dark in tone and written in the same pseudo-kayfabe fashion I can only seem to write in, although that doesn't mean I won't throw some nuggets of humor in as well. I'm booking with Disney's influence in mind, so some aspects will be deliberately flawed and I've also made a deliberate attempt to use some workers that are generally less-talented. Finally, massive thanks to Jhd1 for creating the laundry list of alts as well as providing the new show logo and giving his general input into this, plus as always, my appreciation to the other writers that have allowed me to borrow a couple of character concepts, whom I will acknowledge further when appropriate. Anyway, some elements of the story have intentionally been left shady/vague at this juncture, particularly the specifics of what transpired at Clover Fields. The first show should be up sooner rather than later, I've got a couple more backstory pieces to squeeze in first, but in general due to my style of writing and limited free time, this will probably be a fairly slow-moving affair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMAN Posted August 2, 2011 Share Posted August 2, 2011 Well, I'm excited. I don't think Disney would do that bad handling a wrestling promotion these days. Just because their primary demo is kids doesn't mean they can't have a serious wrestling product. I'm pretty sure Pirates of the Caribbean and a lot of their modern movies attract plenty of adults. As for the Clover field thing, I hope it was a robot invasion. That could be Steve Flash's chance to save the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWF Fan Posted August 2, 2011 Share Posted August 2, 2011 I'm also interested to hear about the Clover Field incident, sounds interesting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 5, 2011 Author Share Posted August 5, 2011 ________________________________________________ :: The Magic Kingdom of Total Championship Wrestling :: http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/Disney_vs_Marvel__Mick_Fury_by_steevinlove.jpg Clover Fields? Sorry son, that's classified... ________________________________________________ Disney Announces Acquisition Of Total Championship Wrestling Properties ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex, Orlando, FL, Thursday, May 27th, 2010 TCW held a press conference this morning on Hess Sports Fields to provide the first details of their relaunch underneath the Walt Disney Corporation umbrella. Acting General Manager "Fabulous Frank Roberts" revealed that the promotion is set to return to active programming this summer, having "tied up the loose ends" left by the pre-takeover administration, bringing their controversial hiatus to an end. Disney CEO Robert Iger said of the transaction: "The team behind Total Championship Wrestling have done an impressive job of nurturing these properties and have created significant value. We are pleased to bring this talent and these great assets to Disney. We believe that adding Total Championship Wrestling to Disney’s portfolio of brands will provide significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation.” Roberts added: “Beginning July 2nd, TCW will enter a new era with strong expectations. With the support and encouragement of the Walt Disney Entertainment Group, we have secured a new two-year media contract with their GNN Total Sports subsidiary network that will continue and expand upon our eight year relationship by launching a brand new flagship program. This is a key component of a wider broadcast strategy to compete directly with our competitors on an equal financial footing, supported by a diverse and co-ordinated advertising campaign from our parent media company.” Disney is urging critical observers to look at how it integrated Marvel, which it acquired earlier this year. If that’s the model, wrestling fans have little to fear and may have a lot to cheer about. Disney has left the creative minds at Marvel alone, and focused on finding new ways to make money off what they create. This is a positive sign that CEO Robert Iger will have a light touch when integrating the promotion once known as the Hollyweird Grappling Company into the Disney behemoth. “We have some concepts in mind, but the intention is not to re-brand Total Championship Wrestling, in fact it's the opposite,” Iger told reporters. One reason this approach makes sense is that like Marvel, TCW brings strength in an area where Disney has been weak - boys. Although Pixar’s Cars and Toy Story have shown strength among boys, and Pirates of the Caribbean has been a strong boy property, Disney is primarily known for properties that skew more female. Professional wrestling is a recognised staple of the boy, teen male, and young adult male markets, an area where Disney is determined to expand. “Marvel has a great team of talented people both on the creative and business side,” Iger replied when comparing the two acquisitions. “It’s an extremely well run company. In short, there were no signs that Marvel needed a lot of help managing what it’s doing. Total Championship Wrestling on the otherhand, did not arrive with a clean bill of health. We have faith in the people already there, but Disney are under no illusion that they will need our full support to make their product viable again and we are commited to that end." Some are concerned about the Disneyfication of wrestling, with worry that Disney will try to "adjust" the content to make it more family friendly. But over the past couple of decades, Disney has become much more open toward content directed at adults and has multiple studios producing such content. It seems unlikely that Disney is unaware of TCW’s grittier content or intends to change its target audience. At this point, Disney isn’t much different from any other public company in the range of entertainment it can produce or market, operating under the same constraints. The following list of performers comprise the TCW roster. According to Iger: "Each man has his own story, his own motives, his own talents, yet they all share the same goal. Success and superstardom." "The Golden One" Rocky Golden © (World Heavyweight Champion) Bryan Vessey Fox Mask "TCW's Godfather" Tommy Cornell "The Outlaw" James Justice Brent Hill Freddy "Huggy" Huggins "Pure Athlete" Art Reed Sammy Bach Tom "Angry" Gilmore Wolf Hawkins "The 24 Hour Party Animal" Edd Stone "Emperor" Ghengis Rahn "The Cowboy From Hell" Texas Pete Jack Marlowe Shawn Gonzalez "The Pinnacle of Personal Hygiene" Dermot O'Logical American Buffalo Rick Law "The Insurance Policy" Charlie Thatcher Troy Tornado Donnie J "The Great White Shark" Eddie Peak Joshua Taylor "The Tag Team Master"Robert Oxford Fumihiro Ota "The Instigator of Violence" Victor Kahn TJ Bailey After the initial roster was revealed, Iger and Roberts closed by thanking those in attendance before opening the floor for questions. Journalists were explicitly told prior to the conference that questions concerning the faults and failings of the previous ownership would not be fielded at this time. The promotion will return to our screens in the first week of July with the season premiere of TCW SLAPDown!™. ________________________________________________ OOC Notes: Because diary build up isn't exactly my forte, I'm just going to run through the non-default TCW additions in note form here for the time being. Their individual stories including how some, particularly Gilmore, came to be in the company will be incorporated into the shows themselves (I just find it easier to write that way). Angry Gilmore is obviously an editor job. In keeping with his upcoming backstory, he's signed to a 1 year written deal and has had a 'creative control' clause inserted into his contract. I'd been contemplating ditching Gilmore from the story for a purer game type of diary, but having signed him for TCW in past games, his character and push was something couldn't really do without in story terms and generally, so considering how much having him makes this diary easier to write, I decided he was a 'must'. With the exception of Gilmore's fixed deal, the rest of the TCW are on game-generated contracts, so written deals will wind down as normal. Jack Marlowe and James Justice were freed up during my 7-8 months of simming. Marlowe was a more surprising addition, but given how bloated the talent pool is with former TCW employees, it seemed SWF just let him go (unless I missed a drugs test story or something?). Justice's contract came up in USPW around April, so he resigned on a ppa deal due to their status, allowing me to use him as well. Obviously during this time a few other workers elsewhere (Freddie Datsun, Brett Biggz, etc) have been freed up as standard game-turnover. Fox Mask, Shawn Gonzalez, Fumihiro Ota, Art Reed,TJ Bailey, etc, have all been signed in normal play and due to TCW's newly embraced cult status, are on ppa agreements (as well as being shared with their starting promotions). It's not often in a TCW game that I've needed to worry about losing talent that wasn't nearing the end of a contract, which makes choosing who to push a little less straightforward than usual. As you can see, half of the original TCW roster has departed as per backstory. To make this slightly more challenging from my perspective, several of those released were just done on the basis of whoever's contract came up in the first year of simming. So being lumbered with the likes of Texas Pete and Ghengis Rahn, whilst losing The New Wave, Koshiro Ino, etc, was as much by luck as design. It's also worth noting that due to the date of the Clover Fields Incident, Benny Benson never made it to TCW and is still anchored in the SWF midcard. At certain stages during this diary, I may catch up with some of the former TCW talent to show where they ended up. One more backstory post to come and then it's on to the first episode of the completely original production, SLAPDown!™. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest codey Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 I'm really enjoying this. That the new roster was made in a near-completely organic way is awesome to me. Push Dermot! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20LEgend Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 This has been really good so far, really can't wait to see what's in store for SLAPdown!™. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMAN Posted August 5, 2011 Share Posted August 5, 2011 I don't really mind the editing jobs, as long as they are not overdone. It's nice to see a roster that's different from what we're used to seeing every time we start up a game. Tired of seeing the same old TCW cards over and over too, so this will be a nice change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 6, 2011 Author Share Posted August 6, 2011 Well, I'm excited. I don't think Disney would do that bad handling a wrestling promotion these days. Just because their primary demo is kids doesn't mean they can't have a serious wrestling product. I'm pretty sure Pirates of the Caribbean and a lot of their modern movies attract plenty of adults. As for the Clover field thing, I hope it was a robot invasion. That could be Steve Flash's chance to save the world. Glad to hear it ZMAN. You're right. I think the business approach of Disney today has evolved beyond focussing on kid-friendly content alone. I was going to touch upon this after you first posted, but since the Press Conference piece covered it, I thought I'd wait. Steve Flash to the rescue? Interesting theory. As for robots... not this time, however you have just given me a bit of inspiration to finish one of the final segments for the first edition of SLAPDown!, so for that sir, I thank you. I'm also interested to hear about the Clover Field incident, sounds interesting I'm really enjoying this. That the new roster was made in a near-completely organic way is awesome to me. Push Dermot! This has been really good so far, really can't wait to see what's in store for SLAPdown!™. Thanks for the feedback guys. The roster dice-up could have been more kind(I seem to have lost 90% of my babyfaces), but that's the deal so I'm just going to have to work with it. As for Dermot O'Logical, he's a project, no doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhd1 Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 Great start, my friend and like everyone else I can't wait for the shows to start. And Dermot really is one of your favourites, isn't he!? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eidenhoek Posted August 6, 2011 Share Posted August 6, 2011 woooo gilmorrrrrreeeeee. Also, I wanted to see Mickey Mouse statted out in-game D: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 7, 2011 Author Share Posted August 7, 2011 Overview: The following match was the scheduled Main Event at TCW's annual "A Little South Of Sanity" pay-per-view in 2009, the event during which the Clover Fields Incident transpired. Whilst considered controversial in it's own right, the "Immunity or Destruction" match foreshadowed an occurance far deeper in magnitude, bringing Total Championship Wrestling to it's knees and scarring the wrestling business as a whole in the process. ________________________________________________ :: The Magic Kingdom of Total Championship Wrestling :: http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW_ALittleSouth.jpg A LONG WAY SOUTH OF SANITY LIVE, Sunday, Week 4, November 2009 from Clover Fields w/a Sold Out crowd of 15'000 fans in attendance. ________________________________________________ http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/TommyCornell.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/RickyDaleJohnson_alt12.jpg Tommy Cornell versus. Ricky Dale Johnson The “Immunity or Destruction” Last Man Standing Match Joining The Main Event In Progress... It is nearing the end of what would prove a landmark show and for the promotion's central and longest running and multifaceted storyline, there was but one chapter left to write. The Syndication of TCW by Tommy Cornell's dominant heel faction had defined their programming since 2007, continually battling the fractious resistance movement that opposed their totalitarian rule. This would be the conclusion of a war that had pushed the promotion to the brink of extinction, forcing the hand of the faceless 'Consortium' to evoke a stipulation that would provide permanent resolution to the conflict. Should Ricky Dale Johnson, the unofficial leader of the rebellion, defeat his arch-nemesis, then the Syndicate would be banned as an entity and it's members unable to team or even associate with one another for the rest of their tenure. However if Tommy Cornell emerged victorious, the Syndicate would achieve immunity from federation sanction and regulation, existing above the law that governed the promotion. They would be unstoppable. Any outside interference would result in the termination of the offender's contract with immediate effect. This would be finality. An epoch in history of TCW. Jason Azaria reiterated what the Last Man Standing match entailed for the two combatants as Cornell, with his knuckles coated in brass, opened up the wound on Johnson's forehead; however it was a 'little fact' that most people already knew. Depriving a paying fan of their seat, the former TCW figurehead folded up a steel chair, but was unable to wield it as RDJ caught a second wind and struck with a ferocious clothesline that took both men tumbling over another barrier and landing in a more open section of the stands for a double seven count. This portion of the contest had seen the modern-day gladiators brawl throughout the arena, the highlights of which included Cornell giving his foe the Three Inch Shrink from off of a concession stand and Johnson spearing the British native through the exterior of the entrance ramp. There would be no doubt that to both men, this match was the culmination of every heated word, merciless assault, disputed outcome and enduring scar. This was everything and with the contest nearing the twenty five minute region, the bumps became harder and the counts longer. Fatigued, favouring different body-parts and unsure of how to obtain victory, their natural instincts drew them back towards the squared circle and it's plain canvas, stained with their physical exertion and smeared with an increasing amount of sticky, crimson outpouring. The fans roared as the pair exchanged blows and strong right hands reciprocated chest-lashing Blade Chops until Johnson lurched forward with an almost involuntary discus-clothesline to settle the dispute. His jelly-legged momentum had carried him into the turnbuckles, then against his better judgement and with blood clouding his field of vision the big Texan climbed, oblivious to the clamour of yellow clad arena security personnel at ringside. A fan, more specifically a boy in a flannel shirt and cap, had managed pull his partially-developed frame underneath the bottom rope, invading the sanctity of the ring and compromising the very bout itself. He was probably no more than sixteen years of age, but was otherwise unremarkable. The type of kid nobody would be able to describe when asked to later. RDJ just gazed at him through bleary eyes, a tired expression adorning his face as the security team pounced at Charlie Thatcher's instruction and ended the ill-advised exhibition of youthful exuberance, perhaps coupled with substance-driven idiocy, hauling him from harms way. Johnson never saw Cornell's slight of hand as the Syndicate-founder unhooked the taser from the unsuspecting bodyguard's belt and he barely felt the prongs of Thatcher's weapon rip into his torso. Within moments the electrical current surged through him and he fell from his perch, convulsing on the mat as if his body danced to the rhythm of twisted, unheard music. The atmosphere around him had changed dramatically as fans watched, hearts in mouths as Johnson's body began to smoke and the stench of a macabre barbecue found it's way to their nostrils. Unsure of how to interpret the situation, the referee gazed back towards the stage and awaited guidance from whoever sat behind the curtain, before he reluctantly adhered to the instructions passed via his radio. To dispossess Cornell of the weapon would constitute already outlawed interference and consequently, he had no choice but to count against Johnson as the valiant competitor reached for the ropes without reward. When the ten count finally came, Johnson's eyes had virtually sealed. He could barely focus on the faces of the medical crew who were in immediate attendance around him or make out Cornell's silhouette as the hot arena lights burned the image of his triumphant celebration into the Texan's retinas. The rivulets of blood meandering down his face felt warm and almost comforting now that the sensation of raw voltage criss-crossing his muscles had departed. He knew he'd lost. The Freedom Fighter's mission statement centred around stopping Cornell from destroying all that they held dear. He never expected their destruction to come at the hands of a new threat. Cornell didn't see them coming. Not until it was too late. Nobody would be prepared to for the inbound chaos they brought forward. By definition the end has to have a beginning. And so it began. Result: Tommy Cornell defeated Ricky Dale Johnson in 29 minutes when Johnson failed to answer the ten count. Rating: B+ ________________________________________________ OOC Notes: This piece is important to the diary for two reasons. The first, to provide some more backdrop to the incident that this story centers around (duh, Sebs). The second, is to set Tommy Cornell's personal course going into the first show. Speaking of which, the first episode of SLAPDown! is coming along very nicely and should be posted around this time next weekend. I may drop in a quick info post inbetween then and now, just to sum up the in-game changes to TCW, product tweaks, new hierarchy, etc. Nothing too major. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 9, 2011 Author Share Posted August 9, 2011 Great start, my friend and like everyone else I can't wait for the shows to start. And Dermot really is one of your favourites, isn't he!? Thanks jhd. Yeah, I rate Dermot. He's a decent little worker, but is kinda pigeon-holed by his gimmick. Plus I need to get some mileage out of that alt you made for me. Also, I wanted to see Mickey Mouse statted out in-game D: It's always good to know the appetite's there for a Mickey Mouse God push. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdarnz Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 Wow! What a match - I've had my eyes on the diary since the first post expecting some sort of Hogan-esque Disneyland ticker-tape parade, but I see it's the opposite direction the story is coming from and I'm hugely intrigued. If every update to this diary is as well-written as the above then we're in for one hell of a great ride! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZMAN Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 RDJ is dead! I imagine there would be a lot of guys walking out if they just watched one of their friends get killed by such a high-risk stunt. I would like to see what kind of publicity this gets TCW, can't be good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 11, 2011 Author Share Posted August 11, 2011 Overview: Just a quick rundown of a few details that weren't really deserving of a full-blown backstory segment. ________________________________________________ :: The Magic Kingdom of Total Championship Wrestling :: http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/espn-rebranding-landscape-w.jpg Welcome home... ________________________________________________ Total Championship Wrestling Owner: The Walt Disney Corporation Project Coordinator: Chuck E. Cabot Acting General Manager: "Fabulous" Frank Roberts Senior Official: Eugene Williams Location: Orlando, Florida Promotion Size: Cult Style Name: Total Disnification Current Organizational Momentum: C Current Organizational Prestige: C- Current Budget: $2'500'000 (Disney calls the shots on production, marketing, etc. All set to maximum) Product Settings Key Feature: None Heavy Features: Traditional, Mainstream Medium Feature: Modern Low Features: Cult, Comedy, Realism, Daredevil, Hardcore Very Low Feature: Pure (Just enough tweaking to avoid full-on fan alienation, at least until they see SLAPDown!) ________________________________________________ OOC Notes: First episode of SLAPDown! is pretty much written, so expect that to land over the weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest codey Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 I was totally expecting to here more about RDJ flopping aroud like a fish. That, or Mickey Mouse holding a press conference with Tommy Cornell standing right next to him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 11, 2011 Author Share Posted August 11, 2011 Wow! What a match - I've had my eyes on the diary since the first post expecting some sort of Hogan-esque Disneyland ticker-tape parade, but I see it's the opposite direction the story is coming from and I'm hugely intrigued. If every update to this diary is as well-written as the above then we're in for one hell of a great ride! Thanks rdarnz. No, TCW isn't exactly arriving with a fanfare. It's very much damaged goods at this point. I really appreciate the sentiments and whilst a majority of the actual matches in show won't be written to quite such a level of detail, hopefully they're still reasonably satisfying. RDJ is dead! I imagine there would be a lot of guys walking out if they just watched one of their friends get killed by such a high-risk stunt. I would like to see what kind of publicity this gets TCW, can't be good. I was totally expecting to here more about RDJ flopping aroud like a fish. That, or Mickey Mouse holding a press conference with Tommy Cornell standing right next to him. That match was part of what got them to where they are now. The pre-Disney shenanigans will be revisited throughout the diary and touched upon in places during some of the shows. It's typically convoluted. As for RDJ, he's certainly out of the picture. Dead? Time will tell. And for a slight spoiler. The Mouse is indeed in town for SLAPDown!... kinda. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eidenhoek Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 Getting hit with a taser shouldn't kill him. The bloodloss or whatever sounds far, far worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 14, 2011 Author Share Posted August 14, 2011 OOC Notes: This first edition of SLAPDown! is a couple of segments larger than what can normally be expected, but there were several seeds to be sown, so consider them planted. ________________________________________________ "We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." ~ Walt Disney http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/TCW_Slapdown.jpg From The House Of Cornell To The House Of Mouse TCW SLAPDown! : Episode 001 - Tuesday, July Week 1, 2010 - From The HP Field House Your Announce Team: Jason Azaria & Kyle Rhodes ________________________________________________ http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FabulousFranksml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/SaraMarieYorksml.jpg And So It Began... Parting the thin black veil that separated dreams from reality, the freshly appointed General Manager of SLAPDown!™ is caught on camera standing inches from the entrance curtain, observing the frantic activity of the Disney-assigned production team unfold from afar with apprehension. Frank Roberts felt like a ghost, floating somewhere in-between the waking world and the landscape of dreams. The last few days had blurred into one surreal sequence, but having begun his tenure in Total Championship Wrestling as a behind the scenes go-between guy, his ascension to power was more than coincidental. He'd only been with the company since Arnold Westberry severed his respective ties four months ago and whilst the wrestling journeyman wasn't much of a step up in terms of temperament, his work was solid and to his credit, he was as dependable as a Cold War nuclear shelter. How exactly he'd managed to manoeuvre himself into this position of power was a question for another time, as tonight, the 'Fabulous One' stood at the helm of TCW's brand-spanking new flagship show. Perhaps the Walt Disney Entertainment Group recognised he had the foresight to work with the corporation in this post-Clover Fields reality. He was one of the few not to protest when their parent company re-branded the established Tuesday night television show to “SLAPDown!”. Sure he hated it, most of the wrestlers did too and it had taken a beating on internet forums as well as the dirtsheets, but what did a few frustrated armchair bookers and computer nerds know? Disney wanted to freshen up what they believed was a tired format and besides, it was just a name. Nobody really knew what it stood for, but a name was a name and a show was a show. Total Championship Wrestling faced a struggle to adjust to the myriad of massive changes that Disney had planned and putting everything into perspective, learning to live with a stupid show name wasn't a big deal. Besides, Frank Roberts had more immediate concerns. Tonight was the beginning of a new era. The new executives would be watching and he was still unsure of what was happening on the show that supposedly required his stewardship. A feeling of insignificance washed over him as he surveyed the area, observing the workers who frequented the sprawling backstage expanse. The scene was a veritable hive of activity with production assistants and other backstage workers running in every conceivable direction. Just who the hell were all these people!? They all seemed neat, trim and exuded an air of confidence and purpose in their duties. Roberts in comparison felt uncomfortable in his recently fitted grey suit, with no immediately apparent tasks to perform. Still, it was important to make a good impression on his new employers. "Just a quick question if I may..." Roberts prompted, grabbing a stagehand sporting a white Disney polo-shirt before the young man could disappear. "Do you have a copy of an itinerary or something for me to run through? Y'know, to make sure everything is in order..." The voice that cut in was chirpy, yet professional and drew the GM's attention to a large board adorned with a running schedule on the nearby wall. A young woman, obeying the same smart/casual dress code that seemed to be in force, introduced herself as Miss Sara, which sounded familiar to Roberts, although it would be a while before he could retrieve the conversation he'd had earlier with another of 'those Disney people' concerning the assignment of his own Personal Assistant. This was evidently her. As dictated by this role, Sara would be a key component in TCW's new organisational mechanism. She ran her pen down a clipboard-mounted checklist, which covered the many rigours that holding a wrestling show necessitates. "Here at the Walt Disney Corporation, it's our prerogative to be more than adequately prepared. I think you'll find we've taken all conceivable measures to ensure that the show airs without any hitches, Mr Roberts." "I see..." The former road agent replied, massaging the temples of his head with his left hand. "In that case, what exactly is it I do here?" "You're in charge of course." Sara beamed, whilst this historic edition of TCW programming began on the other side of the curtain. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/LogoDisney.jpg A Not-So-Enchanted Introduction From the moment the cameras powered up and the lights began to dim, it was clear that Disney's influence on the TCW would be immediately apparent. The promotion's previous approach to it's programming used to convey a sense of simplicity and gritty necessity, but that was all blown away like a pile of leaves in the wind as the barrage of major league pyrotechnics detonated around the new set, where the camera rested, shuddering violently to emphasise each explosion. The set itself is like something straight out of Space Mountain, a hulking steel structure that encompasses the massive Total-Tron screen as it's centerpiece, lined with dual banks of smaller monitors to complete the HD set-up. The network of metal supports and translucent panels gleamed expensively in the silver beams that emanate from the elaborate and recently installed lighting rig, loaded with the strongest strobes and beams from MGM, implemented to project Disney's fantastical vision of how wrestling should be presented to the masses. The fans sat anxiously on their seats, excited that something was finally happening inside what was once the Milkhouse arena. Jason Azaria and Kyle Rhodes took their places behind the sleek black announce desk positioned at ringside, donning their headsets and checking the functionality of their monitors. Having emerged from a makeshift trench next to the stage, a member of the production crew warned the team that they would be on the air in matter of seconds and scrambled back into cover, counting them down... from ten, to five, to one... before the camera theatrically transitioned towards them. "Make no mistake about it folks, this is Total Championship Wrestling and WE ARE BACK! Welcome to Orlando! You're watching the Season Premiere of SLAPDown! I'm Jason Azaria, alongside me is Kyle Rhodes and we're in uncharted waters tonight on a..." Suddenly the lights went down, simultaneously derailing Azaria's well-rehearsed introduction, whilst plunging the arena into darkness and confusion. Finally the Total-Tron flickered to life as the main source of illumination where the outline of Cinderella's Castle gradually faded into the foreground until it dominated the high-resolution screen. The fans looked on with no real sense of what was going on, talking amongst themselves, whilst the announcers seem equally perplexed by the unscheduled disruption, waiting for information to trickle through their headsets. Without warning a spotlight suddenly blazed high into the crowd, onto a lone woman who... appeared to be a fairy? This supposed Tinkerbell stood amongst the cheap seats, waving to the stunned audience. Disney's beloved pixie pirouetted and spun playfully before tapping her magic wand against a not-so-magic safety harness that cued her wire-assisted ascension into the air. The spotlight tracked her as she sailed upward towards the rafters where her brief journey came to it's conclusion, prompting a shower of sparks to rain from the lighting rig above the squared circle as if it were fairy dust. Within an instant, the lights had been raised to their normal ambience and what sounded like a crudely remixed Jonas Brothers track pumped through the arena speakers as further fireworks were set off around the entrance-gateway. "You have got to be kidding me." Azaria uttered, adding to the collective disbelief as a procession of Disney characters emerged from the artificial mist lingering on the stage. "What the... Donald Duck?" Donald was the first to appear, shortly followed by Daisy, then Goofy and Pluto is there too alongside Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Pinocchio, the Magic Mirror and many of the franchise's lesser lights. They danced down the ramp, waving to the audience and using a propelling gun to launch t-shirts and toys into the crowd. Some of the audience clap along with the insipid music, but others turned and started to boo in earnest. One fan even hurled a plastic Buzz Lightyear figure back from whence it came, which consequently smacked against the fuzzy head of Scrooge McDuck. After several minutes, Mickey and Minnie Mouse stroll onto the stage, arms linked and serenaded by the vaguely familiar figure of Donnie J, who bounded out from behind the larger-than-life characters, beaming inanely with dilated pupils, wearing a lurid orange Disney polo-shirt and pumping his fist to the music. On behalf of the Walt Disney Corporation he welcomed the fans to the show, describing TCW as the entertainment conglomerate's newest 'friends' and in the process, tried to cajole the more listless observers into joining the fun. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/DonnieJsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/TommyCornellsml.jpg ...The Fly Boy Crashes To Earth... "YEAH! Come on! Lets hear some love Orlando! Are we all ready to have some fun out here!?" Donnie squealed into a microphone, trying to further encourage the fans like a hyperactive tangerine cheerleader. "My name is Donnie J and are we going to have a totally awesome show tonight or what!? YEAH!" By this point many of the characters had invaded the ring itself with some even going as far as to perform mock wrestling moves on each other, to the derision of the TCW loyalists in the crowd. Even the usually placid announcers were left exasperated by this bizarre invasion of the squared circle's sanctity and when the camera caught the newly immune Tommy Cornell sauntering onto the stage, nobody was quite sure how to react to the polarizing Syndicate leader. Not once did he glance across at the sea of faces in the crowd who wavered between greeting his arrival like that of a home-town hero or a much-despised megalomaniac. Regardless of his presence, the party continues undaunted and upon climbing into ring, some of the characters actively encouraged Cornell to engage in the saccharine festivities as multi-coloured confetti rained downward. "Did somebody put something in my coffee?" Azaria blanched, struggling to decipher whether the sight of Minnie Mouse linking arms and dancing with the self-proclaimed 'Godfather of TCW' represented some drug-induced vision. When Cornell's face suddenly tightens to a scowl and he nearly lashes the polkadots off of Minnie's dress with a Blade Chop, all becomes crystal clear. The man who fried Ricky Dale Johnson alive eight months ago was in no mood to party. Reacting first, Goofie (or more specifically some college kid trying to earn a few extra bucks over the summer) protested in vain and promptly received a mafia kick to the sternum for his trouble, clattering a couple of his fellow performers over like bowling pins. The others took heed and kept their distance from Cornell, as if an invisible perimeter had been erected around the British superstar. They were mere bystanders watching him wrench the microphone from Donnie J's hand in order to vent his spleen. "Listen to me, friends and listen to me well." Cornell began, pacing the ring. "There seems to have been something of a misunderstanding in regards to this takeover. You see, I'm told there's a bunch of people here that are apparently in charge now. But they need to understand they're operating in a different world now... and it ain't Disneyworld. This ring is my domain and I own it." Displaying his ruthless streak, Cornell used his boot to pin down the wounded performer in the 'Minnie' costume, ignoring the distinctly male voice that pleaded from beneath the detachable fuzzy head as more pressure was applied to the base of his neck. "Now let me address our newly appointed General Manager." Cornell continued, spitting the term out with contempt. "I don't answer to you. You're no more in charge of this company than the fat guy in the front row over there is... the lobotomised drones running around backstage with clipboards are... or even the schmuck who has to mop the bloodstains from the canvas after the show!" "The 'Immunity or Destruction' stipulation the omniscient consortium of vagueness put in place before this place went to the dogs? That's iron-clad, sunshine. I've got the papers to prove it, so whichever corporate puppet sits in that token GM position, you can't do jack about it... other than dance when I jerk your strings." Cornell smiled knowingly and finally released the costumed victim from beneath his heel. Little did the unfortunate individual know, their ordeal had yet to end. "And as for our new best friends from Florida..." Cornell smiled a thin, dangerous smile. "F**k Disney!" To emphatically deliver his point, Cornell draped the already injured Minnie Mouse over the middle rope. Police sirens sounded in the distance, but whomever had been summoned to restore order would never make it to the ring in time to prevent what the Syndicate leader had in mind. With red and blue lights swirling around him, Cornell adopted a gratuitously sexual position and thrust forward repeatedly before using his boot to send the over-sized mascot tumbling from the ring. An act of desecration, pure and simple. Rick Law had seen enough. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/TommyCornell.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/RickLaw.jpg [standard Rules, Impromptu Singles Match]: TOMMY CORNELL versus. RICK LAW The tone of the first match in the televisual history of SLAPDown!™ was set when Rick Law charged forward, instantly removing the Syndicate leader's vertical base with a double-leg takedown and rattled some rapid-fire right hands of justice against his cranium. The Orlando fans roared with approval, encouraged to do so by some discreetly positioned audience reaction prompts off-camera, suggesting that despite his previous indiscretions, the Corrupt Cop had perhaps re-pointed his moral compass since Clover Fields. Having been dispatched from backstage, the law enforcer is all over Cornell like a pre-pubescent girl on Justice Bieber, forcing the referee (a late arrival to this unscheduled bout) to frequently intervene with his five count, although Law barely adhered to such instruction, intent on removing the Brit's thin mask of stubble by means of a bottom rope friction shave. Azaria pointed out that such a furious pace would be difficult to maintain for the duration of the contest and sure enough, Law's surging adrenaline level ebbed away. However, not before achieving a near-fall off the back of an overhead fallaway slam. The former USPW standout initiated pinfalls on instinct and fuelled by the noble motive of avenging the poorly paid, Disney employed actors, Law whaled on Cornell further following each subsequent kick-out as if chalking up an officially recognised victory would have been a mere bonus in his quest to force his former stablemate to conform to the standards and practices of the new mouse-eared regime. Nobody was above the law. Not even Tommy Cornell. In order to counter this righteous fury, Cornell drew on his vast experience and turned to pages from the darker side of the wrestling playbook. GNN Total Sports even provided an unintentional assist to this underhanded end as Cornell took a length of TV cable belonging to the network from the floor and literally tried to choke the fight out of Law, before the latter was able to back his aggressor into the steel ringpost and inhale oxygen uninhibited once more. For all the intensity (coupled with questionably lenient officiating), the overarching story is that no matter who held a desire to instigate some sort of Bronson-esque campaign and eradicate the Syndicate, the outcome of last year's "Immunity or Destruction" match had rendered such a vitriolic endeavour pointless. This bout was little more than a footnote in the failed campaign of the departed Freedom Fighters. The old ruling consortium had already played Russian Roulette with TCW's future and Cornell had won. Even though Law rallied around the twelve minute-mark, he would soon be deprived the personal satisfaction of inflicting Cornell's first defeat of the calendar year. Cornell threw Law's arm aside as he broke out of an attempted "Squad Car Slam" (Sidewalk Slam), inadvertently causing the stray limb to strike the referee in the head and true to form, Ray Johnson sold the accidental collision like a shotgun blast to the face. With the official prone, Law delivered a standing spinebuster to Cornell instead and predictably found nobody present to count the pinfall that followed, which only added to his growing sense of injustice. Throwing his head back in frustration, the young powerhouse became aware of the mat subtly vibrating around him with the bounding footsteps of a new arrival. Believing the presence to be that of a replacement referee, Law turned expectantly... only for the boot of Wolf Hawkins to slam into the base of his skull. What followed was a typically well-rehearsed routine. Cornell found himself draped across his unconscious opponent, whilst Hawkins strolled around ringside as if he were in the vicinity by mere coincidence as the rejuvenated referee made the academic three count. Result: Tommy Cornell d. Rick Law when Wolf Hawkins interfered w/a Full Moon Rising. Grade: B- Hawkins rejoined his mentor in the ring, the latter now towering over Law in an inappropriately dominant stance. Kneeling down, Cornell raised his defeated opponent’s head for what Azaria feared was the start of further punishment, but Cornell just held his former running mate and in a moment of rare mercy, leaned in close to deliver some parting words. "I am the law..." Nobody expected him to quote Judge Dredd. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/RockyGoldensml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/JasmineSaunderssml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/Libertysml2.jpg Follow The Golden-Brick Road Unconcerned by Disney's ill-judged opening fiasco and the collateral damage that had arisen, Rocky Golden stood backstage for a pre-arranged interview segment with Jasmine Saunders. The dull hue of the industrial lighting barely did his physique justice, although the former Prince Adam was still an impressive specimen to behold and the presence of the diminutive interviewer only emphasised his considerable size. "I'm here with the current World Heavyweight champion, Rocky Golden..." Saunders began, habitually telling the viewers something that those blessed with the gift of sight were already aware of. "...standing in the way of his legacy are TCW's best, already queuing up for a crack at the championship!" "Sure, I've got a hard road in front of me..." Golden cut in, whipping back his mane of brown hair dramatically. Saunders hadn't actually phrased her opening sentence in question form, but Golden was keen to conclude his obligation to management and decided to rail-road the interview. Besides, the young media student was still learning the ropes so there was little prospect of much complaint and even though Saunders made a clever quip about it being a rocky road, Golden ignored her. "James Justice is the first obstacle in that road, and tonight I'm going to roll right over the top of him." And with that, the interview ended. Saunders was now alone and in the process of signing off the segment when James Justice materialised in the background, almost seeping through the scenery as if he were Robert Patrick and the sequence had been plucked from Terminator 2. Naturally, Saunders is shocked to find the popular grappler and his ten-gallon hat behind her, leaving her unable to question whether the absence of respect in Golden's words were the cause of the veteran's apparent grizzled displeasure. Justice's darkened eyes narrowed to slits as he tracked Golden, who was already halfway down the corridor, wondering how many of the champion's teeth he'd punch out later on. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDB.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/AmericanBuffalosml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FloydGoldworthysml.jpg Placating The Short-Tempered Buffalo From the confines of his locker room, American Buffalo slammed a taped fist against the set of steel lockers in an act of petulance as the door swung open and his manager strode in. "How's my favourite clie... UMPH!" Floyd Goldworthy began, before the breath was forced from his lungs as American Buffalo raised him by his lapels and pressed him against the wall. "Why don't I have a match tonight, Floyd!? Huh? What in the blue hell am I paying you for!?" "B-b-b... Buff... listen Buff, I tried... b-but I didn't even kn-know who was in charge of setting the c-card!" Goldworthy squirmed, his small frame provided little protection as his heavyweight client continued to bash him against the interior of the room. "I grow tired of your excuses! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't tear your under-developed arms right out of their sockets!" "Pl-please... I can get you a match! I can get you a match for next week!" Goldworthy pleaded as his face turned a deeper shade of red. "Not good enough, Floyd!" "A t-title match... I'll get you a title match! I swear! I-I just need some time..." Finally it seemed Goldworthy had managed to quell American Buffalo's ever shortening fuse. The former NYCW powerhouse relinquished his grip on his manager, causing Goldworthy to gasp for breath. "You'd better, because if I don't have a championship belt around my waist by the end of summer... I swear the authorities will never find your body!" http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FoxMask.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/SammyBach_jhd5.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FumihiroOta.jpg [standard Rules, Triple Threat Match]: FOX MASK versus. SAMMY BACH versus. FUMIHIRO OTA Back in main arena, a former stalwart of the now defunct TCW Cruiserweight Division made his return. With a Triple Threat exhibition bout (or a Three-Way Dance for any DaVE fans watching) looming on the horizon, Fumihiro Ota sat perched in the far corner and adopted the role of 'the watcher', curiously studying his opponents as they got proceedings underway. For the opening couple of minutes, Sammy Bach and Fox Mask enjoyed a neat back-and-forth exchange, with Ota remaining entirely passive to their duel until Bach vaulted over the masked feline and physically removed the ninja from his platform of solitude with dropsault. Now that Ota's personal space had been violated, the 'Super Ninja' entered the game, trying to dictate the pace by working his controlled warrior fighting-style. He measured his attacks whilst retaining both patience and discipline in the face of his opponent's more avant garde approach to combat. Such virtues however, were not always appropriate in this frenetic, non-stop climate. "Boom! Forget Kung Fu Panda... we just got a taste of the furious flying feet of Fox Mask!" Azaria squawked, inwardly hating himself for working in such a blatant plug as Ota ate a Cartwheel Kick. Was KFP even affiliated with Disney? Uncharacteristically, Fox Mask hesitated for a moment and contemplated his next move. This was an important night for him. 'The King of The Coastal Zone' couldn't remember the last time he'd fought a match outside of California, but the fans in Orlando didn't seem to care that they had no idea who he was and roared approvingly. Maybe they appreciated the fact that he threw himself into this bout furry-feet-first, with minimal concern for his own well-being? That or they just dug the awesome mask he wore. Or maybe they were simply on their feet because Bach was airborne, inbound and set to make Fox Mask the recipient of a high velocity flipping neckbreaker. Yes, that could be it. Result: Sammy Bach d. Fox Mask & Fumihiro Ota w/ an Adrenaline Shot on Fox Mask. Grade: C Azaria claimed that even Aladdin's Flying Carpet couldn't soar higher than Teddy Powell's former tag team partner, so impressed was he by the considerable trajectory of Bach's descent. Rhodes analysis was typically grounded in reality, but he pondered whether his announce colleague was earning brownie points with management for racking up so many Disney references during the broadcast. Oblivious to the announcers chattering, Ota carried his wounded pride to the back, where he'd likely reflect on the dishonour of such a defeat and left Emma Chase's boyfriend to celebrate a victory that Bach hoped would lead to something more meaningful in the weeks to come. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/TroyTornadosml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/DaVE%20Diary/ShawnGonzalezsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/DaVE%20Diary/VictorKahnsml.jpg Access Denied Outside in the warm Orlando night-air, a rather low budget, crappy rental car drove around to rear entrance of the HP Field House, where a security officer stepped out of his pokey office and stopped the vehicle, lowering his head inside. This was standard procedure. Nobody made it beyond the barrier or the chain link without undergoing an ID check. Not even a nationally renowned lead singer. "Tornado..." The guard grunted as he ran a pen down his clipboard, before finally shaking his head. "Nope, you're not on a list." "Not on the list? Did I hear you right chubby?" Troy Tornado replied questioningly, convinced this were all the fault of a menial administration oversight. How else could a superstar of his profile possibly be denied entry to this oversized kids sports hall. "T-R-O-Y T-O-R-N-A-D-O... former lead singer of Painful Procedure? Former TCW World Heavyweight Champion? The man who put the c*ck in rock?" "Listen buddy..." The checkpoint attendant replied. That last line didn't even make sense and frankly, he didn't have the time to listen to some Jack Bruce wannabe try and talk his way into the former Milkhouse. A small queue of vehicles had already formed behind Tornado's rental. "I don't make the rules, but if you ain't on the list then you ain't comin' in. Take it up with management." The Disney employee sighed as Tornado noisily departed with screech of tyres (preceded by a volley of abuse) and allowed a large loading truck immediately behind to roll forward. The attendant walked alongside the cab and craned his head upward, laying eyes on a character who was arguably the most questionable and undesirable he'd seen all night, which was quite an achievement given the low calibre of humanity that this wrestling promotion had dragged to Orlando with it. Not that Shawn Gonzalez hadn't been called worse in his time. "C'mon fren. We need to get this equipment unloaded. Show's startin'." Gonzalez flashed a false smile as the staff member returned an 'all in due course' gesture and glanced across at the suited individual sat behind the steering wheel, next to DaVE's former Lone Wolf. Strange, he thought to himself. These guys didn't resemble ringcrew or technicians, despite the large company logo on the side of the trailer. "Mind if I take a look in the truck, buddy?" "Look in the truck? Fren, you don' need to look in the truck. It's jus' stuff for the set, y'know? We need to get movin' mang." Gonzalez replied in his strange and unidentifiable accent, however his 'these aren't the droids you're looking for' routine proved ineffective in the absence of Jedi mind-trick powers. Refusing to be dissuaded from his inspection, the checkpoint attendant moved to the rear of the vehicle with the intention of opening up the trailer. He didn't expect to find himself staring at his own reflection in the dark glasses of Rick Law before he could place a hand on the latch. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/RickLawsml.jpg ...The Dark Side Of The Law... "This truck should have been inside over an hour ago." Law observed bluntly, back on duty and chewing on a cigarette, no doubt in a foul mood after what happened in the ring with Tommy Cornell earlier. "Just following procedure, Officer. I was about to... UMPH!" The attendant began, only for Law to pin him against the trailer, baton pressed to his throat, causing the hapless forty-something employee to splutter. "I didn't ask for your opinion." Law growled, applying additional pressure with his weapon, which caused the man's face to redden further. Wisely, the attendant picked up on the law enforcer's not-so subtle instruction and by way of a flailing arm, signalled for his colleague to raise the barrier (in-between gasping for air), granting access to the vehicle and it's questionable cargo. This cooperation was sufficient for Law to drag the attendant back as the truck slowly chugged forward, carrying the smirking Gonzalez across the threshold, although the morally bankrupt officer hadn't finished with him yet. "If I find out that you keep making a habit of unnecessarily delaying company vehicles..." Law warned his still-collared victim. "You and me are going to have a very unpleasant conversation. Understood?" The man nodded frantically, prompting Law to finally release him before seeking out the nearest catering area. He'd worked up quite an appetite during this brief abuse of power and marched towards a nearby entrance door, leaving the Disney employee slumped against the wall, praying that he'd be assigned Diamondplex duty next week. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/EddiePeaksml.jpg When The Shark Meets The Marshmallow Eddie Peak reclined on a bench in a darkened room from an unspecified location miles away from the arena, with a number of dismembered Disney toys scattered around his feet. A ruling from TCW's previous management prevented him from featuring on SLAPDown!™ tonight in person. Peak's pearly white teeth flashed ominously in the reduced light as he grins whilst popping Zac Efron's youthful head from the shoulders of his action-figure body. There's no clarification as to whether this unsettling segment had any correlation to the takeover or was something Peak simply did to amuse himself in the confines of his room. Eventually the 'Great White Shark' delivered a brief, but rambling promo comparing Bryan Vessey to a marshmallow and talks about how he's going to squish his soft foamy body into a pulp, how he's going to tear into Vessey with his teeth and then devour him, etc. The unhinged insight concluded with Peak channelling the spirit of Efron and delivering his final words through the dancing-sensation's severed plastic head. "See you soon Bryan! They're going to feed the shark, Bryan! Don't want to be late for feeding time!" Peak imitates in a high-pitched baritone, laughing psychotically afterward. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/EddStone.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/JoshuaTaylor.jpg [standard Rules, Title Unification Match]: EDD STONE versus. JOSHUA TAYLOR Having made the executive decision that TCW's roster was too depleted post-Clover Fields to support both divisions, Disney decided that the International and All-Action straps were redundant and much like Hilary Duff, of no further use to them. Thus the Television Title was introduced to fill the void and unsurprisingly, few people appreciated the corporation's assault on TCW's traditions. Disney argued that the All Action Division had never delivered on it's potential, whereas the concept of an International championship seemed inappropriate for a promotion that currently struggled to find willing venues and competitors in it's homeland, let alone oversees. As much as the detractors would hate to admit it, on balance, the mouse had a point. Understandably, part of Joshua Taylor resented having to hand the International Title over. Described as a student of the game, he held an enormous amount of respect for the belt he held and the holders who had worn it before him. It pained him to know that it had been consigned to the foundry, eBay or wherever old championship belts end up these days, but what's done is done and now the former PGHW'er had a new focus; Forging his own path with Disney's newly introduced trinket and hoping to someday elevate it to the same level of prestige and meaning as the belts that had gone before. Edd Stone on the other hand, just wanted it because a) it meant more TV time and b) chicks dig gold. And thus followed a tale of two former champions, neither of whom had been defeated for their respective belts, battling to become the inaugural holder of another. A unification match of sorts that Stone approached with his usual spazzy, incoherent offence, snapping off flips and ranas with little rhyme or reason behind where things were headed in the overall context of the bout. Stone frequently argued (usually via social networking) that his unique style caused an estimated 86% of opponents to collapse in the face of the sheer awesomeness. Unfortunately for the Canadian party boy, the far more methodical Taylor didn't fall within this percentile. The former PGHW'er had found it impossible to read Stone's non-existent gameplan for large portions of the contest, but with nine minutes on the clock, Taylor telegraphed a springboard moonsault, snatching his opponent off the second rope with a German suplex. The Butterfly Lock followed and within a few, pain-addled seconds, 'The Black Sheep of The Family Stone' had been put to the sword. Result: Joshua Taylor d. Edd Stone via Submission w/ a Butterfly Lock to become the 1st TCW Television Champion. Grade: C- Stone complained vigorously after the bell, disgusted that the new champion had resorted to such a lame move to win. That unimaginative crap was straight out of the Jeremy Stone playbook, but this unspecified infraction cited by the Canadian failed to alter the outcome. Taylor went into the record books as the first man to hold the newly minted Television Championship and SLAPDown!™ went elsewhere. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/BryanVesseysml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FreddyHugginssml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/JoshuaTaylorsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/JasmineSaunderssml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/GhenghisRahnsml2.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/DermotOLogicalsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/DonnieJsml.jpg Patience Is A Virtue Bryan Vessey heaved a sigh as he applied his black wrist taping. The former PGHW wrestler sat backstage, watching the scenery of assorted wrestlers, assistants and security go by. This edition of SLAPDown!™ wasn't the first time that Vessey had been authorised to turn up to the arena with no idea what match had been allocated to him. Tonight it just so happened that he'd been slated to face The Machines with a mystery partner in his corner, but for all the uncertainty such a scenario entailed, at least he'd been booked on the card. Much had happened since his return to TCW last year. The previous management had placed him on working probation to mediate the violent war that Peak had started and Vessey could deal with that, but he couldn't deal with the lack of action or competition that his frequent omission from the booking sheet had deprived him. On the surface, the order that prevented the pair from being scheduled for the same show had successfully neutralised their personal duel, but in reality it only provided temporary respite and had resolved nothing. A profusely violent collision between the pair remained inevitable somewhere down the track. He hoped that the removal of the old decision-makers might coincide with the removal of the restrictions placed upon him, but as it transpired, Disney had done their research and early indications were that the new management would adopt a similar stance to contain the situation until reviewing it for themselves. Still, at least the new management would look into it... that was progress. However, that didn't help alleviate Vessey's boredom or provide an outlet for his pent up aggression, even though a viable candidate for the latter urge had just passed within close proximity accompanied by several women with questionable standards. "You see this Vessey?" Freddy Huggins goaded in the former PGHWer's direction, wrapping his arm around the closest of the groupies. "Unlike you, The Hugmeister uses an opening to fill some openings!" Vessey shook his head, commendably resisting the temptation to beat Huggins' curly-haired cranium like a drum as the Canadian escorted his entourage to the Animal's designated quarters, intent on maximising the free time that Tommy Cornell's hostile takeover at the beginning of the show had gifted him. Instead, the younger of the Vessey siblings continued to observe the activity that swirled around him. Joshua Taylor, the new Television Champion no less, had just returned and was in the midst of conducting a typical fighting champion interview with Jasmine Saunders, stating that he'd defend the belt with honour against the worthiest of opponents. Ignorant to the presence of Floyd Goldworthy who lurked behind the superficial background, listening intently to every word of the former PGHWer's piece as the cogs in his devious little brain began to clank and turn. Beyond them on the opposite side of the backstage expanse, Ghengis Rahn gnawed at a whole hunk of ham, seemingly acquired from a medieval banquet as opposed to the Disney-provided catering, whilst Dermot O'Logical and Donnie J discussed the finer points of fame and rubbing shoulders with the A-List, even if the former Fly Boy were the one doing all the talking. Perhaps this was the type of interaction that Disney envisioned when they decided to implement their new policy that forced all TCW workers to remain at the arena for the duration of the broadcast? Build some bridges, establish friendships, raise morale, that sort of thing. A strategy straight out of the corporate Human Resources handbook, evidently on a page that Freddy Huggins hadn't bothered to read and in truth, Vessey didn't care for. He hadn't come back from Japan for this. "Ready to go out there?" A scratchy and very recognisable voice asked from off-camera, breaking the former PGHWer's concentration. And with that, Bryan Vessey's previously unknown partner made himself very much known... all suddenly seemed right in the 'Happiest Place on Earth'. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDB.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/JoshuaTaylorsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/RickLawsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/DaVE%20Diary/ShawnGonzalezsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/DaVE%20Diary/VictorKahnsml.jpg This Wouldn't Have Happened With UPS "Come'on babe, you know I'm excited to hear that, but what about Michelle?" Joshua Taylor said, in the midst of conversation. "Sure, we talked about moving to Orlando now I'm off the road, but I didn't realise we were gonna be this sudden about it..." The Television Title dominated the screen as SLAPDown!™ returned from commercials and picked up in one of the HP Field House's allocated loading areas where the former PGHW import, fresh from a spot of promo-cutting nearby, stood against a Fire Exit door with a cellphone pressed to his ear and his fiancé (AAA's Tracey Brendon no less) on the other end of the line. His voice reverberated around the parking bay, sounding hollow and empty as he addressed his other half, however the area was far from deserted. The camera panned outward and revealed Disney's acting Head of Security, Rick Law, infringing on Taylor's personal space. For the first time tonight however, the Law Enforcer endeavoured to avoid a physical confrontation and chose to verbally reprimand the former PGHW'er student, bluntly informing him that the area of the loading dock he currently inhabited was for 'restricted personnel only', to which Taylor dismissively acknowledged with a flapping hand before casually vacating the scene, still locked in his phone conversation with the younger of the Brendon sisters. With the unwanted bystander gone, Shawn Gonzalez emerged from behind the concrete pillar that had previously concealed him, sounding frustrated by the belated nature of this rendezvous. The truck the former DaVE extremist was seen in earlier, sat idle in the distance. "Mang, this ain't your typical merchandise in here. Vic's getting' edgy with those things bang'in in the back. Like eez gonna put a bullet or twenty in'em." Law maintained his humour-deprived demeanour as Gonzalez's gums continued to flap. In fairness, it had taken longer to sabotage the CCTV feeds than he'd anticipated, given the number of Disney lapdogs running around. Now though, the former USPW stand-out was only concerned with unloading the freight and getting it into storage, at least until his paymaster dispatched further manpower to Orlando and a more permanent arrangement could be made elsewhere on the sprawling sports complex. That was assuming the first phase of this operation went to plan, of course. "There's a problem." Gonzalez's suited accomplice reported as he emerged from the trailer, shaking his head as much in bemusement as annoyance. "They're gone." Law recognised Victor Kahn from the police file he'd obtained from California. Kahn was a dangerous man, irrespective of his small stature and sophisticated tastes. Originally from Florida, he was an extensive traveller, a career salesman who dealt weapons of war wherever the opportunity for trade arose and like any arms dealer worth his salt, Kahn felt no inclination to justify his business. He usually possessed an ice-cold demeanour, but those who'd dealt with him described him as a control freak and when things went wrong, like they had in Mexico two years ago, people tended to get hurt and Kahn, somehow walked away with clean hands. Gonzalez on the other hand made his money through the distribution of illegal narcotics, often pushing his produce via his Latino protégés in Puerto Rico. Reports surfaced last year suggesting that the Lone Wolf had successfully taken his operation to the West Coast, shoe-horning a new product into an already crowded marketplace and using the vibrant club scene as a testing ground. Although the ample financial reward Law received for his services prevented him caring about with whom he worked, it still paid to be informed when associating with men of their ilk. Especially if they were liable to double-cross him. "Gone!? How do you lose something like that!?" Law snapped accusingly, climbing inside the trailer to inspect it himself with the aid of a police-issue flashlight. Behind the camouflage of innocuous steel struts and equipment, two containment chambers had been installed to hold the truck's mysterious and evidently dangerous cargo. Neither of the containers had remained securely sealed, their doors hung tellingly open with the occupants nowhere to be found. Kahn was correct. This was a problem. "Both of them were accounted for when we entered the complex. I checked... they must be on the site somewhere." Kahn replied defensively. A heated discussion between the trio followed, during which the camera slowly drifted beyond the trailer's interior and pointed, it seemed aimlessly, towards the darkened, rust-encrusted mass of piping and ventilation shafts that ran the length of the ceiling. After several moments of inactivity two sets of soulless eyes flashed from the shadows, where two most un-Disney-like creations resided, listening indifferently as blame was apportioned amidst the raised voices below. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/HumanArsenal.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/BrentHill.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/BryanVessey.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/LarryVessey.jpg [standard Rules, Tag Team Match]: THE MACHINES versus. THE VESSEY BROTHERS The Machines awaited their opposition after the most recent intermission concluded, focused on the task at hand as the fans filtered back from the concession area, as much in the dark over the identity of Bryan Vessey's partner as the former Syndicate tandem were. Truth be told, this mysterious X-Factor in the contest didn't trouble either Anderson or Hill. Such is their experience and ability as a tag team, their approach to matches rarely deviated. Once the bell sounded, they called the tune and dictated the pace, forcing their opposition to adapt their own gameplan to counter The Machine's methodical and clinical strategy. History confirmed that more often than not, these respective opponents would fail, so it was understandable that the well-oiled wrestling machines were left unphased by the veritable bombardment of pyrotechnics, even after the forms of Bryan and Larry Vessey marched through the resultant smoke as if they'd left one war zone and were stepping straight into another. “Did somebody say 'Dream Match'?” Rhodes chirped, being rhetorical. It was a statement that carried some weight, but then again so did the 51 year old Larry Vessey these days, instructed to compete wearing a black t-shirt to protect his expanding frame from the harsh realities of high-definition TV. In order to provide the background to the contest, Azaria revisited the history of the two teams, explaining that the two units were virtually inseparable and practically interchangeable in the roles of champions and most viable challengers throughout their TCW tenures. However even 'the man of 1000 facts' had to concede that for Momma Vessey's baby boys, their high-water mark now lay nearly a decade behind them, whereas Anderson and Hill were set to return to their peak once the latter had dusted off some inevitable ring rust following his neck injury. In other words the challenge of the Machines (not to be confused with the Challenge of the Go-Bots) is true to their nature. Continual and unrelenting. This was just a simple story of the two most dominant teams in the promotion's lineage battling for the right to be recognised as the best tandem in their field. The intense focus and strategic ringwork took such precedence that interaction between the quartet of participants and the crowd is non-existent, although that isn't to say the fans aren't engaged in watching the duos try to tactically outmanoeuvre each other throughout a predominantly mat-based encounter as Bryan Vessey and John Anderson shouldered most of the load. This match was one for the TCW loyalists. A reassurance that despite the takeover, the promotion could still provide the type of legitimate, no-frills match-ups that brought it to the dance during their post-HGC quest for identity. Unfortunately, it proved impossible to separate the evenly-matched teams within the designated ten minute time limit. Result: The Machines drew w/ The Vessey Brothers when the time limit expired. Grade: B- The crowd refused to withhold their dissatisfaction at the decision and the competitors mirrored this frustration as Brent Hill and Larry Vessey awkwardly disengaged from their lock-up. They still had plenty of gas left in their respective tanks, but those reserves would need to be saved for another time and a different occasion. For now, the duos stood in competitive limbo, locked in a tense and unfulfilled stand-off as the announcers lamented the time restrictions dictated by network television, pondering whether there would be an appropriate stage for one further encounter somewhere down the road. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FreddyHugginssml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/EddStonesml2.jpg For The Sake Of Clarity, 'Huggy' Is The Intellectual Property Of The Walt Disney Corporation Not for the first time tonight, Freddy Huggins was shown enjoying the company of several women backstage, one of whom looked suspiciously like the 'Tinkerbell' seen during the broadcast's disastrous opening segment (otherwise uncredited as Sprite of BSC 'fame'), still in most of her pixie garb. Opting to go for a bottle rather than a glass, Huggins strutted across the private room, downing the champagne as he went, whilst Edd Stone had draped himself across one of the leather couches and was lost in his iPhone, less inclined to toast a night where he'd missed out on the Television Title. "Now this is why I got into wrestling!" Huggins slurred, raising the bottle. "Tonight, the Hugmeister is going to hit the town..." Before he could finish, a set of knuckles rapped on the door although the Disney assistant didn't wait to be invited into the room. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but 'Hugmeister' is actually the intellectual property of another individual, we can't use it on air without breaching copyright law." "Intellectual property!? It's my freakin' name!" Huggins protested. "That's the name the ladies call out when they're getting shaf..." "Well they still can, but not whilst we're on air." The assistant cut in. "But don't worry, our writing team is working on a set of alternatives for you to use. You're an important part of the demographic the network is targeting after all." "You creative types... you're always full of ideas! What've you got?" Huggins asked, with a swelled sense of importance. Flipping through his clip sheet, the assistant rolled off the possibilities. "We're torn between 'The Hugginator', 'The Hugster' although that's skating a bit close to a patriotic, orange character that another network own the rights to... and 'Huggy'." "Huggy!?" Huggins repeated as he spat a mouthful of champagne onto the dress of the shapely female next to him. "I like it." Stone replied, before the assistant continued. "It did test well with our focus group and we can have a new line of merchandise out by Thursday." Huggins glanced back at Stone who was nodding in agreement, despite still being fixated on his phone. "I guess it could work..." http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDB.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/FabulousFranksml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/DonnieJsml.jpg Sometimes, Freedom Is Revoked For A Reason Frank Roberts sank further into a sofa elsewhere backstage, his eyes fixed on some indistinct point in the distance and feeling unsure of himself as Donnie J recited another celebrity encounter that likely had never taken place. The Fabulous One was still trying to ascertain how he slotted into the organisational structure that Disney had implemented (the same new way of working that forced him to tolerate the former Fly Boy) and whether his position was as devoid of real influence as Cornell had earlier claimed. After all, nobody seemed to really need him and beyond signing off the occasional piece of administrative paperwork, most of his night had been spent circling the backstage area in search of something meaningful to do. If it weren't for the fact his feet ached from so much aimless walking, he would have made an excuse to leave the room the moment Donnie opened his mouth. "So Miley's like; duh this isn't even like the same club and I'm like, dude in these shoes? And she's all like I've so totally over this..." Maybe he was just a paper authority figure? A token offering from Disney that underpinned a wider deception, creating the illusion that TCW still had any real say in their new direction? Or was he just becoming senile and crazy, like Robert Oxford, a man so mistrustful of modern society that every invention since the abacus was considered a work of the devil's hand and intrinsically evil. He could feel the twitching, clammy hand of paranoia resting upon his shoulder... "Excuse me Mr Roberts." The pimply-faced white slither of an assistant interrupted, his hand placed on the GM's shoulder to get his attention. "Management are still awaiting your conclusion following a request to review and subsequently revoke the disciplinary restrictions placed on Eddie Peak and Bryan Vessey." Roberts smiled to himself. Finally, a real decision to make without any outside coercion or misinterpretation. "Sure, it makes sense to have them both on tap." Roberts replied confidently, only vaguely aware of what he'd agreed to. "Where do I need to sign?" http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/RockyGolden.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/Liberty_alt.jpg [standard Rules, World Heavyweight Title Match]: ROCKY GOLDEN © versus. JAMES JUSTICE The production crew struggled to get into position, relieved that the night was nearly over as SLAPDown!™ rolled towards the match that had been promoted most strongly in the days before the event took place. As Miss Sara directed James Justice towards the staging area, she afforded herself a smile at a job well done. Admittedly the televisual début of TCW's new flagship show may not have gone entirely to plan, but with a combination of quick-thinking, time-management and luck, the most important bout of the night ran to schedule. The HP Field House was rocking appropriately ahead of the introductions. Justice emerged to a thunderous ovation from the fans, keen to give the returning superstar a warm, Orlando welcome. The laid back, fun-loving dudester who washed up in Hollyweird fourteen years ago however, was long gone. The prevalence of USPW's programming in the southern states was such that even the most casual of viewers in lesser America could stare slack-jawed at their rabbit-eared television set and identify the Floridian as a Western Outlaw. Many had come to believe that Liberty was nothing more than a studio-conceived creation, inflicted on a man who learned his trade in Texas and continued to live this lie until the day he rode off into the sunset with Sam Strong in 2007. Regardless, in this post Clover Fields era, James Justice is the closest thing Tee Cee Dubya had to Ricky Dale Johnson. The bonafide cowboy munched on a toothpick as Rocky Golden emerged from underneath of a shower of gold sparks on the stage, with the belt resting over his shoulder. Clearly at a different career juncture to his veteran opponent, the former Prince Adam confidently slapped it's metallic face, an indication that he expected the belt to be returning home with him when all was said and done. For the first portion of the contest, such a bloated sense of self-belief seemed well-founded as Golden physically dominated the man who coveted his gold, flattening Justice with a running bodysmash and utilising heavy hitting blows to generally club the challenger like a seal. Rhodes provided the viewers with an insight into the champion's gameplan, explaining that Golden's simple but effective strategy relied on softening up Justice's back in anticipation of his finishing move, 'The Rack'. In response, Justice raked the face, then levelled the champion with a discuss clothesline before launching a further assault on the G-Rated champion's facial features. The Floridian's rugged demeanour was in stark contrast to how Golden remembered him. Prior to his departure to wrestling's largest retirement home, Liberty was renowned for his easy-going nature, psychedelic wrestling tights, oversized shades and Saved by the Bell lingo. The announcement of his return and subsequent title match had left Golden fairly unmoved, for whilst Liberty was a reasonable (if completely unfocussed) competitor in the squared circle, few considered him a serious threat to the championship. Liberty was more of a danger to himself than to anyone else. James Justice however posed a very different proposition to former fan favourite's other alias. There's an underlying sense of raw nastiness about him. His knife-edge chops cracked Golden's flesh like the unforgiving tip of a bull-whip and although the dusty jackboots that completed his drab attire were made for walking, they were equally proficient at cracking a rib or two. Countering an attempted press-slam, Justice dropped behind Golden and shoved him into the ringpost with enough velocity to adversely affect the mighty former CZCWer's right shoulder. Within moments, 'The Outlaw' began to circle the champion like a battered, long-haired vulture and descended quickly, working the pain-riddled joint mercilessly... Which drew exaggerated applause from Tommy Cornell. Cornell pleaded impartiality when the referee detected his presence at the fringe of ringside, but as Azaria pointed out, few believed the former TCW figurehead had made his way out just to get a closer look at the action. Justice shared this mistrust of Cornell's agenda and clamped eyes on the Syndicate founder, whilst applying a rear chinlock to Golden. Cornell returned a thumbs up gesture with questionable sincerity in response, which prompted Justice to warn the Brit to keep his distance... a momentary distraction that aided Golden in propelling his aggressor forward to escape the hold. Rocky Golden didn't appreciate the newly immune conqueror of the Freedom Fighters contribution to his cause, but retaining his title remained a more immediate concern than Cornell's latest round of mind games. Unfortunately, Cornell wasn't the only distraction that loitered beyond the ropes, 'contaminating' the ringside area as Azaria put it. His protégé, Wolf Hawkins had been picked up by the cameras, nonchalantly climbing into the technical 'trench' located next to the stage, undeterred by the fact that the area that was restricted to authorised personnel only. After all, this night had already established that the more talented half of Youth Gone Wild now operated beyond the laws of this land and Hawkins subsequently pie-faced the Floor Director who had the gall to argue otherwise. Having taken the man's headset and told the dissenting voices on the other end to go 'make love to themselves' in less sugar-coated terms, Hawkins made himself comfortable at the main console, his eyes widening like saucers upon realising the arsenal of pyrotechnic firepower that now lay at his disposal. Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr... BOOM! BANG KABOOM~! Several indiscriminate button presses later and the place was lit up like the fourth of July as thousands of dollars literally went up in smoke following a series of uncoordinated explosions, much to the amusement of the Syndicate members. Amidst their howling laughter however, a far more serious scenario began to unfold in the squared circle. Without warning, a lone flare screeched through the air, it's descent momentarily lost amongst the lights before it fell downward and struck it's victim. James Justice was unconscious before he collapsed the mat, his face blackened and speckled with the firework's burning embers. The disqualification that followed was inevitable, but whilst the referee yelled into his radio for medical assistance, Golden made the decision to exit the ring and obliterate Cornell with a running shoulder block on the outside. There was an audible "thud" as Cornell's body crashed against the rail and landed upon the padded floor, but almost as soon as Golden had returned to the confines of the squared circle to aid his wounded opponent, a winded Cornell had struggled back to his feet. The British superstar forcibly retrieved the World Heavyweight Title from the timekeeper, the smile now wiped from his face and his eyes burning wide with malicious intent as he grasped the belt he considered to be his personal property. Within a heartbeat, the 'Untouchable One' stood inside the ring and took a wide-arching swing as he drove the belt's faceplate into the dome of Golden's skull, drawing further indignation from Azaria and Rhodes. Result: Rocky Golden t. James Justice when the match was abandoned at 16:28. Grade: C+ "I don't care what that contract says! Cornell can't be allowed to hold this company to ransom! Not after what happened!" With both of the competitors laid out and the match long since abandoned, Cornell and his protégé revel in their superiority. As Eric Vincent would pen it, the pair conveyed the narrative that they were a force of unsanctionable dominance and having taken ownership of the very squared circle itself, they basked in the crowd's vehement disdain, oblivious to the figure that materialised on the haze-ridden stage. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/AngryGilmoresml.jpg ...This Is Total Championship Wrestling? Angry? No, I'm Just Disappointed... Tom Gilmore stood on the ramp, stoic and backlit by the electric blue entrance-gate beams. When he stepped forward in deliberate fashion, the spotlights fell upon him and reveal not only the steely determination in his eyes, but a cap bearing the motivational 'Never Give Up' acronym that epitomised the former Land of Supreme occupant 's spirit. Maintaining his vigil, Gilmore observed proceedings from a distance as SLAPDown!™ came to a close with the enduring visual reminder that irrespective of how the promotion's landscape had shifted, Tommy Cornell's self-gratifying campaign of wanton destruction had begun in earnest. F**k Disney indeed. http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/SDdivide.jpg http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/JKStallingsJrsml.jpghttp://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/TCW%20Diary/GilThomassml.jpg The Real Battle: LA The glacial 'clink' of bottle meeting glass introduced the broadcast to unfamiliar territory and an engagement far removed from the Canadian Animals' den of debauchery shown earlier. In all the episodes of programming that preceded this one, the faceless investors that TCW's owning consortium consisted of, had never been shown on camera. Instead, they were presented as an almost celestial force, indirectly passing down their edict from above and expressing their volition without ever taking physical form on-screen. Due to their interference in promotion matters remaining so sporadic, they commanded little of the average fan's attention and beyond having the shared wealth to acquire ownership, the air of intrigue surrounding their affairs remained minimal. The common perception was that although unknown, the group was little more than a functional necessity. Still, the fact that America could now witness the circle of financial power in such raw form on national television only reinforced the unquestionable aura of importance conveyed in this segment and such aforementioned details did little to diminish that. Despite the camera's presence however, the veil of secrecy remained half drawn on it's subjects, leaving a prevailing sense of frustration as the feed captured only indistinctive shots of hands, suited torsos and backs of heads, meaning the individuals in question remained anonymous as they celebrated the sale of the promotion's assets to the Walt Disney Corporation. All that is, except for J.K. Stallings Jr, who kept several feet away from the main gathering, with his hands crossed behind his back. The scene is dominated by a spectacular view that looked out at Los Angeles, its buildings shining like chips of cold glass against the black velvet night sky. From the vantage point of this top floor office, the occupants could fully appreciate the extent of the city's sprawling growth, stretching beyond the limitations of their eyesight. The software billionaire's manor and business offices stood high above the city and on a typical evening, Stallings could be found standing exactly where he stood now, conspiring to one day dominate its citizens in what was becoming an increasingly pointless vendetta held against the vibrant community he blamed for the Hollyweird Grappling Company's downfall. He harboured a similar hatred for all those who contributed to that failure, a phenomenon Stallings had never experienced previously in business, but channelled a majority of this negative energy towards LA. The emotional scars inflicted by the wrestling industry ran deep and six years of self-imposed sabbatical had done little to heal them. "Vermin. Maggots. Insufferable parasites. Their existence sickens me." Stallings bitterly spat, leering at the booming and exciting night-life below his glare. "Their time will come, Gil... soon I shall create a software program that will cause their planes fall from the sky and turn their technological devices against them... a legion of robotic warriors at my disposal. Or perhaps I should forego that step and build my own robots? Yes, I shall simply commission the construction of the metallic implements of doom myself!" Gil Thomas stood behind the HGC Founder, silent for a moment as he digested the statement. People had warned him what to expect, but robot armies? This was lunacy and further evidence that the young software mogul had been consumed by insanity. This however mattered little, because first and foremost J.K. Stallings Jr was still incredibly rich and it was his money that did the talking, repeatedly drowning out his delusional words. Furthermore despite his once brilliant mind being clouded by madness, he still experienced moments of mental clarity that demonstrated his shrewd, opportunistic and increasingly ruthless nature. Throughout the evening, Thomas hadn't failed to notice various StallCorp operatives 'working the room', tapping the consortium members for information in order to find those most dissatisfied by their collective failure. Therein lay the reason the reclusive software billionaire had organised this celebratory occasion with his fellow investors. He needed to gage their usefulness going forward. "I have every faith you can make that happen, but as we were discussing, the Walt Disney Corporation..." Thomas nodded as he tried to steer the conversation away from this particularly diabolical scheme. Stallings interrupted the knitwear millionaire, shaking his head. "No... you're correct. Disney are the makers of dreams and more viable than the robots. With your help I can discover their secrets and harness their technology... but instead of brainwashing children to demand poor quality toys and absorb hours of inane animated smaltz, we will use their methods to control their newly acquired wrestlers. Then, I will use the same miscreants who betrayed me to inflict their brand of violence at my command. They shall be transformed into a lycra-clad plague!" Stallings turned to face his new ally with a glint in his eye and despite their conversation taking the route that Thomas anticipated, he couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by a sense of trepidation. "Very well. I shall provide you with what you need. We have a deal... and soon Los Angeles... very soon, your day of judgement will arrive." http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/LAfiller.jpg ...I Propose A Toast To Your Demise... _______________________________________________ Overall Show Rating: B- TV Rating: 3.28 OOC Notes: Hopefully that wasn't prohibitively long. My DaVE diary had a cookie-based reading incentive scheme, but sadly the mouse wasn't in favour of that. More observant readers may also have noticed that I've tweaked and shrunk jhd1's blackfade divider image. Hopefully the man himself doesn't mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 16, 2011 Author Share Posted August 16, 2011 I really need to work on writing more concisely... I intended to post a pretty post-SLAPDown! update today, but Poser seems to want to cripple my laptop these days and I kinda need to slap together a render for Chuck Cabot beforehand. Looks like it's time to trawl the render thread or rerender thread to see if there's something suitable there. On the subject of predictions. As you can probably tell from the nature of the show, it wasn't really worth posting a full preview. The next episode follows a similar vein, but after that, I'll probably start something up. Getting hit with a taser shouldn't kill him. The bloodloss or whatever sounds far, far worse. RDJ's Texan born and Texan bred. Tougher than a $2 steak as JR would say. BAH GAWD~! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest codey Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I read half the show on my phone the other day at work, and only just now got around to finishing it. Great stuff, Sebs! I'm especially curious as to what the contraband Kahn, Rodriguez and Law are transporting is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 22, 2011 Author Share Posted August 22, 2011 I read half the show on my phone the other day at work, and only just now got around to finishing it. Great stuff, Sebs! I'm especially curious as to what the contraband Kahn, Rodriguez and Law are transporting is. Cheers Codey, thanks for taking the time to read it. The Law/Kahn/Gonzalez (I won't tell him you called him Rodriguez ) sub-plot is going to be rather enjoyable to write and book over the coming shows. It's also small part of the central storyline that's going to be rumbling along in the background throughout this diary. Speaking of which, I've spent most of my time writing up the next episode of SLAPDown!. I'm not sure how many people read the first episode, but I'm under the impression it's far too long, so I'll be trying to cut out some of the verbose fluffiness for the next show - in fact I've been tempted to go back, edit and trim down the first show. Anyway, it's well on the way to being completed (hopefully for next weekend), but in the meantime expect a small article either tonight or tomorrow to keep things moving along - and possibly a show preview/predictions post (again, the way the show goes down makes it a little hard to predict ahead of time, but what the hell). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdarnz Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 For some reason, despite it seeming very much shoot-like, I'm not buying the Cornell shoot. I reckon there's potential for a Cornell vs. network representative feud obviously but I feel Disney have came in and taken the project as a risky show - something more akin to a National Treasure or Pirates Of The Carribean in a movie-sense. The show itself was incredibly solid, if it was on television I'd have been glued to the box throughout! However, it took me two sessions to fully read it and I do wonder whether you'll be able to keep pumping out such lengthy shows each time. I love the length and the story told though, so I guess it's a tough call. Anyhow, keep up the amazing work!! And in the words of my current favourite worker in your story "F**K DISNEY!!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 23, 2011 Author Share Posted August 23, 2011 Overview: One night removed from SLAPDown, all is not well in Disney Studios, Burbank, California. The "Media Capital of the World" and workplace of Chuck Cabot. ________________________________________________ :: The Magic Kingdom of Total Championship Wrestling :: http://i80.photobucket.com/albums/j178/sebsplex/Walt_DisneyBrbnk.jpg IGNORANCE IS BLISS IN BURBANK ________________________________________________ "Mr Cabot?" Chuck Cabot ignored the young man loitering in his office doorway, knowing full well the jumped up little flunky would insist on disturbing him no matter how little common courtesy he displayed. "Mr Cabot, sir?" The Disney employee at the door prompted, his hands clutching a ream of paperwork that required Cabot's attention. The recently instilled TCW Project Manager continued to ignore his unwanted visitor, prefering to concentrate on the far more important matter of chipping golf balls into a nearby waste paper basket. Cabot's new office was smaller than he would have liked, whilst being decked out in garish Disney posters and the other mandatory paraphernalia that came with the territory, but it offered enough space to perfect his golf swing, which proved far more desirable than doing anything related to the Corporation's newly acquired wrestling promotion. Besides, that pretty much took care itself. That's what he paid Frank Roberts to do. "Coffee, black." Cabot eventually answered, without looking up. "Um, sir... it's about last night's show." The rank-and-file employee replied, confused by the complete absence of people skills demonstrated by his superior. “Yeah.” Replied Cabot with obvious disinterest. "Leave it on my desk." The young man glanced towards a messy desk in the corner of the room, already laden with unread paperwork and company notices, forming a disorganised collage of headed paper. "I really think you need to look at this, sir." Heaving a sigh, Cabot thrust his club into the chest of the unsuspecting lackey, who almost dropped it, and snatched the paperwork from him to complete the trade. A few moments passed as the executive flicked through his newly received papers, tracing the sheets with his finger, stopping and muttering intermittently. "The early numbers are looking strong, especially in the last quarter... maybe we can make something out of this redneck carnival after all." The polo-shirted employee blanched. "The ratings aren't the problem, sir. There's concern from upstairs about some of the content broadcast." "Right." Cabot raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised. It was a wrestling show after all. Not that he had bothered to watch the season première of SLAPDown!™. "Well, what do they expect? The National Cheerleading Finals? Maybe 'upstairs' would like to throw some ideas into the mixer and tell me how exactly I'm supposed to make this sweaty-man-grapple-fest easier on the eye." Taking a moment to snort dismissively, Cabot sat back on his desk and thumbed to the final few pages where a barrage of annotated notes, all circled unhappily in red pen, seemed to leap from the paper. The more he read, the more the Project Manager's brow furrowed. Numerous instances of employee endangerment, theme park workers injured, complaints from families in attendance... ugh, what were those morons in Florida doing? Cabot scowled, glaring upward at the bothersome messenger who'd delivered this stack of bad news. "Well? What are you still doing here? Coffee, black. And get me a copy of last night's tape while you're at it, bucky." ________________________________________________ OOC Notes: Just a little piece to set the scene within Disney after the first show. The second episode of SLAPDown! is coming together nicely and should be up by the weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebsplex Posted August 24, 2011 Author Share Posted August 24, 2011 For some reason, despite it seeming very much shoot-like, I'm not buying the Cornell shoot. I reckon there's potential for a Cornell vs. network representative feud obviously but I feel Disney have came in and taken the project as a risky show - something more akin to a National Treasure or Pirates Of The Carribean in a movie-sense. The show itself was incredibly solid, if it was on television I'd have been glued to the box throughout! However, it took me two sessions to fully read it and I do wonder whether you'll be able to keep pumping out such lengthy shows each time. I love the length and the story told though, so I guess it's a tough call. Anyhow, keep up the amazing work!! And in the words of my current favourite worker in your story "F**K DISNEY!!" A pseudo-shoot eh? Well, I won't go into too much yet as Cornell's story continues to unfold, but he does present an interesting proposition given his controversially won "immunity" and the first episode of SLAPDown was very much an opportunity to flex his muscles. What I will say though is that contrary to his promo, Cornell's relationship with Disney won't be a straightfoward as an us vs. them/the network scenario. After all he already has much of what he wants, regardless of who's in charge and kayfabe or not, it's pretty much his fault that the mouse is here. Would he declare war? It's great to read your take on it and thanks for the feedback on the show in general, it's much appreciated. Hopefully as things progress I'll find a happy medium with the show length/content, it's difficult because so far I've found ploughing in so much detail feels quite natural and easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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