Boo Smithson (and a huge thank you)

[james_ewing88]

I wasn't sure if I should post this or not, but I thought, in the end, that I should. So, here it goes.

 

I love the CornellVerse. I mostly play with that database, since it is more suited for the game. For some odd reason, I have loved playing in Australia more than every where else. Maybe it's the 4 promotion dynamic, The Comedian being a royal ass, or RAW's dominance, there. When I started, I chose APW. I loved the talent there (The Masters, Harry Simonson, Dingo Devine) and have never looked back. But, there was one guy in APW that I gravitated toward. That is Boo Smithson.

 

The style of wrestling I love is technical. I grew up on Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit, Ken Shamrock, Kurt Angle, etc, so seeing how he was a technical wizard, I pushed him hard. However, I couldn't get him high enough on the card, since he mic skills were so much crap. I had never read his bio before this and noticed something that made me honestly tear up. I saw that Adam had put into his bio that he had a stutter, something I never thought i'd see in a game like this. The reason this hit me so hard is that I have a severe case of stuttering, and i've been stuttering since I was able to talk, so seeing something in a game that didn't make fun of that "disease", I respected it (unlike the WWE with Matt Morgan back in '04-'05. God, I hated that).

 

I know this sounds a little personal, but I just wanted to say to Adam...thank you. Thank you for putting in a character like this into the game. Thank you for semi giving a little awareness to stuttering and for not poking fun at it. You don't know how much I respect that. I have always loved your products and will never stop buying that (i've lost SO much time with TEW). So, once again, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, and i'm looking forward to TEW '20.

[HiPlus]

Jiggle the product around a little, make it Perf > Pop and push Boo Smithson to the moon! And if ya ever want to chat about the Aussie scene in CVerse flick me a message.

[Adam Ryland]

Glad to hear the character resonated, James. Totally agree that the stuttering gimmicks in real-life are always awful!

[Zero]

I never play the default database, I just cherry pick from it for cool names and character bios.

 

Thanks for posting this, I'm def gonna' grab him and have him in my real world data.

[cappyboy]

Great post, Brother James. For all the amazing matches and dramatic storylines I've seen over the years, one of my favorite things in all of wrestling is these kind of connections. And how it's not just fictional characters like Boo they can happen with but real talent as well.

 

One example that comes to mind for me is Owen Hart. When he turned on Bret because he resented being in his brother's shadow, that spoke to me in ways no wrestling story had before and few have since. Like Owen, I am the (YICK) "baby brother" in the family. So when he turned, I was greatly divided as a fan. I really loved and admired Bret for his skills but Owen's struggle hit right at the heart of what it meant to be the youngest child. So I had a hard time hating him for betraying Bret. How could I when I related so compeletely?

 

Another would be the American Badass version of the Undertaker. Not so much because he was like me but my older brother in Alabama. When Taker would roar down the ramp on that custom chopper and circle the ring before entering it, that felt like something my brother might have done. In his younger days, my brother was a passionate biker, a bar bouncer and just an all around wild child. Medical issues have calmed my brother down over the years. But in his prime, he was badass in pretty much the same ways Taker was portraying. So when Taker came on, it almost felt like I was spending time with my older brother. Even though that was and still is hard to do in reality with all the miles between us. I heard and understood all the reasons why this could be seen a lesser period in Taker's career. But the connection was so strong I ultimately didn't care. Biker Taker just resonated that much for me.