I haven’t been on the OVW beat much the last several months. I’ll be honest; it’s the ticket prices. In the wake of their Netflix boom, OVW moved quickly to expand seating capacity and raise ticket prices – so much so, the cost of going weekly essentially doubled for me and my daughter.
No one was happier about the “Summer Discount” that essentially dropped ticket prices back to pre-Netflix levels than me. I don’t like the move to Sports Illustrated’s ticket platform because of the added fees, but… it’s made going to OVW this summer more affordable, and more likely I’ll see more shows than I have in the winter and spring.
The discount definitely paid off in attendance last night. The building was at least 75-80% capacity, a huge improvement over last summer’s weekly TV shows. OVW feels primed for a big summer with their touring and TV broadcasts.
But ticket prices aren’t even in my top three reasons why.
Here’s what’s working for OVW right now, and why I think their recent boom is far from over.
The Fans
The Ringside Podcast has long been the “official” OVW podcast. Eric Cornish affirmed that last night during a commercial break with his podcast buddy Daniel Spencer, who was sitting with the fans last night. But the “Unofficial” OVW Podcast has risen to become a galvanizing force for the OVW fan base.
In addition to the podcast, this busy crew of OVW fanatics have started a weekly “Fan Zone” television program in partnership with OVW. Not only that, they’re building a Facebook Group that’s bringing the promotion’s fans together in a new – and very positive – way. Fans now have a place to talk and talk back after a show – and boy, were they talking last night.
But I’m getting ahead of myself.
The fans were tremendous in the Arena last night. Not only did Shane Mercer get a Happy Birthday chant (thanks, Facebook!), a young fan’s creative sign inspired a chant of “Super Lions” for what looked like a thrown together tag team: Super Z and the Indian Lion Mahabali Shera.
Well played, young man.
But before I go any further about last night, let’s talk about…
The New Kids
I use the term “new” loosely because the kids I refer to have mostly been around for a few years. “Kids” is a stretch too, as some of them are in their late twenties and even thirties. But this crop of talent at OVW is as good as any class I’ve seen in recent years.
Fans of the Netflix documentary may be a tad disappointed attending shows right now. Shera’s still in the mix. So are Haley J, Leila Grey, and Freya. And the Voice of OVW, Bryan Kennison, remains on duty every week. But Maria’s mostly backstage in her primary role, Jessie Godderz has been away doing reality TV, and Cash Flo? Well, he’s got a gig in Atlanta with the King of Tulsa.
But it’s impossible not to love this crew! “Certified” Luke Kurtis has certainly backed up his words from episode 2 of “Wrestlers,” becoming not just a top guy but a babyface! Kal Herro’s been knocking at the door of main event status for some time, and he’s really starting to look the part. Tony Evans rode “Hush!” and his feud with Mick Foley to a Heavyweight Championship this spring. And Will Austin? Well, he’s big and bad enough now as a heel, he helped turn Buzz Backlund into the promotion’s newest darling.
If Buzz Backlund is not related to Bob Backlund, he sure fooled me. Not only does he look like Bob, he’s got Bob’s mania in his promos. He’s incredibly dynamic.
I could talk about the veterans – like, you know, “The Veteran” Jack Vaughn, or Tony Gunn, or Joe Diniero, or even Crixus, who is now not only the champion but (gulp!) a heel! The tag teams are great too. Tusks and Chains and Beaches and Cream both seemed like mismatches initially but have worked out well. And let’s not forget the man in the mask, Super Z.
The women’s division is solid, too. They just “lost” Gema, due to some shenanigans in the ring by Tiffany Nieves, and Lady Bird’s going to be out for a bit due to a family tragedy away from the ring. Side note: if you’re a fan of Lady Bird like I am, you should consider donating to the Go Fund Me for her family.
But look: a great roster and a unified fan base isn’t enough. Not today. But that takes me to the third ingredient to OVW’s success.
Master Storytelling
I don’t know what’s going on with Tiffany Nieves. First she trips Gema, her Bad Girls Club stablemate, knowing that if Gema loses, she has to leave OVW. Then she trips Gemma’s opponent Leila. Then she betrays Gema again, costing her a job and the Women’s Championship. Admittedly, it was very confusing, but those crazy OVW fans? They’re talking about it online today.
They’re also talking about Buzz Backlund, the new kid who has now defeated Will Austin three times. Number three was for the Rush Division Championship, and Buzz won it even after getting jumped by Will before the match.
The fans HATE Will in the best way possible. Will is the kind of heel you gladly pay money so you can see him get his ass kicked. Match number three was a classic, old school story that used Will’s explosive heat to turn Buzz into the company’s newest darling.
Buzz isn’t just a topic of conversation. He’s got memes, too. Lots of them.
And then, there’s this Men in Black thing.
Admittedly, this one’s a bit confusing too. The Men in Black were EC3’s ace in the hole versus Jessie Godderz – months and months ago. Now, they seem to be separated from EC3… or are they? They’re also in league with Crixus, the newly returned fan favorite who almost instantly turned heel and became the Heavyweight Champion.
Now there are 3 instead of 4, three of whom have been unmasked. Why, Big Beef, why? And was that really Jamin Olivencia back in an OVW ring?
And let’s talk about the scrum at the end of the show. It sure as heck LOOKED like a shoot when the action stopped and Josh Ashcraft started screaming for a towel. It took a while to see it was Doug Basham who fell outside the ring, and when Doug stood up, he was definitely wearing the crimson mask.
But how did Doug get out there? He didn’t come from the back with J-Mo and Jedediah Blackhawk. And how did he get injured? Or did he?
If it was a work – they got me.
This, more than anything, had the fans talking on Facebook last night and this morning. Was it a work? Who is the fourth masked man? Is Doug secretly the mastermind behind it all? The mask on one of those guys looked like the mask Doug used to wear as “The Machine.”
I’m just repeating what I read in the fan group. I have my own wild, speculative theory on the fourth man, but I’ll leave the public speculation to others.
Bottom line is this: the storytelling at OVW is second to none. It has been for years. Al Snow is master storyteller, and the crew he has around them – including Adam Revolver, J-Mo, Jedediah, Maria, Bryan Kennison, and Mickie James (and I’m sure many others who deserve credit – sorry if I left anyone out) – does an outstanding job, week in and week out, at selling both short and long term stories.
It truly takes a village, and the crew that assembles at Davis Arena each week – wrestlers, refs, announcers, production, backstage – has elevated OVW over the past year.
When the fans are talking, when the roster is engaging, and when the stories keep you guessing, you’re going to keep drawing.
Yeah, it helps to drop the ticket prices. And it will help big time when the promised new air conditioning is installed in the next two weeks. But OVW’s not going anywhere. They’re set up for a strong summer, fall, and winter. I can’t wait to see what’s next.
Top photo of Al Snow courtesy Lloyd Thomas.