Flair Forever's Payback Live Report!
May 18, 2015 8:53:16 GMT -5
HHH316, Zigzag, and 11 more like this
Post by Flair Forever on May 18, 2015 8:53:16 GMT -5
Hey everybody!
I really had mixed feelings about going to WWE Payback.... I was really irritated that, as of six days ago - the card hadn't really been announced yet.... such a lack of "sizzle" going in to this PPV, as Jim Ross would say. The build just wasn't there, at least for me.
In spite of that, I must say - the talent worked their rear ends off at WWE Payback, all the matches were intense, crisp, & hard-fought.... and the crowd was super-lively! At the end of the night - even though I had some minor issues with this PPV overall, I had a really good time.
I was able to secure 6th row seats - I have such mixed feelings about being on the "floor" at these things.... there are things I LOVE about it, and there are things I HATE about floor seats.
The GOOD:
1. You get to be on camera, a lot....
2. The crowd in these sections are wild & fun!
3. There is a GREAT merch/concession/bathroom area down there that almost NOBODY goes to - no wait, no lines for anything! MORE on that coming up...
4. You really feel like you're part of the action down on the floor!
5. WE GOT TO KEEP THE SOUVENIR CHAIRS!!!!
The BAD:
1. The people in front of you are always standing up, forcing YOU to stand up....
2. The security guys are constantly SCREAMING at everyone to SIT DOWN.... and it goes on, and on....
3. It's a little hard to see sometimes, and I like taking a lot of photos (as some of you know)... that's a little harder to get a good angle from the floor! If you are on the side facing the hard camera - the wrestlers almost NEVER even LOOK in your direction (yes, I know, they're trained that way).... I got a lot of pictures of the backsides of wrestlers!
4. Kids have a real hard time seeing over the adults, especially when they're standing. But I wanted my son to have the experience of floor seats, so we went for it this time... it's frustrating when there are adults standing in the front rows.... and then the children behind them stand on their seats so that they can see something.... and security then yells at the KIDS to sit down.
5. You really hate to see the security guys screaming at everyone to sit down, because it's supposed to be fun.... and yet, no one can see when they're all standing.... it's such an awkward situation.....
Overall, I don't regret sitting on the floor.... but I wouldn't want to sit there EVERY time (unless I was able to get front-row)... my ideal seats are in the bleacher section, in the first five rows there..... I can get great photos, the crowd there is more laid back, and since the seats are tiered - I don't constantly feel like I'm blocking someone else's view (and other people aren't constantly blocking mine).
I'm sure that due to the Baltimore riots just a few weeks ago, security was extra tight.... No, J&J wasn't checking bags at the door - but it appeared that everyone was pretty much coming in through ONE entrance.... making the process very S-L-O-W.... we got there around 5:30 PM, sat in the car for a while (had no desire to wait in line, went down around 6:15.... the line moved so slowly, we didn't get in until the end of the Macho Mizdow match, so we ended up missing much of the pre-show.... oh well, I guess we didn't miss too much...
Anyway, let's get to the photos!
So, after the show... we stopped by that "special" concessions area to hit the potty one more time before getting on the road.... my buddy, my son, and I were taking some photos of ourselves with our new pieces of furniture.... as my buddy was taking a photo of my son and I, a group of people were walking towards us....
"Dan.... Dan.... turn around..... turn around!" I said...... then I said "Hello Renee Young!"
Renee and Corey Graves said "Hi" to me, as they photobombed our picture! Booker T was there too, he didn't say anything... and I was too starstruck to say anything else to them, but it was pretty cool!!!
So, overall, here is my view of the 2015 Payback PPV..... I had a lot of fun! I enjoyed our seats & our section.... The wrestlers worked their tails off... and the crowd worked hard, too, as they were super responsive to everything - I've decided that Baltimore is now one of my favorite crowds!
The problem with this PPV, as I discussed with my friend on the way back to the car.... is that NOTHING happened. No titles changed hands. No storylines advanced.... John Cena beat Rusev, AGAIN. Seth Rollins retained. Kane's NOT fired. New Day retained. Barrett lost to Neville, by a countout? Why, nothing was at stake anyway? What was the point?
At the end of WWE Payback 2015.... we are exactly where we were a week ago.... and two weeks ago.... and three weeks ago. This PPV didn't change anything, and nothing was resolved. It as about as eventful as an episode of Smackdown. And pretty much nothing new was set up.... maybe Lana & Rusev are about to split, but that's it.
While I enjoyed the show for what it was... great wrestling matches and a lot of fun - there was just nothing especially memorable about it.
So, with that being said.... I'm going back into a "WWE break" for a little while.... I've got a few autograph signings and indy shows lined up in the next few weeks that I'm super excited for, I'm going to pour my energy (and my money) into those activities & give WWE a break for a little while, before I get too burned out on the product....
Thanks for looking & reading my long report!
-Flair Forever
I really had mixed feelings about going to WWE Payback.... I was really irritated that, as of six days ago - the card hadn't really been announced yet.... such a lack of "sizzle" going in to this PPV, as Jim Ross would say. The build just wasn't there, at least for me.
In spite of that, I must say - the talent worked their rear ends off at WWE Payback, all the matches were intense, crisp, & hard-fought.... and the crowd was super-lively! At the end of the night - even though I had some minor issues with this PPV overall, I had a really good time.
I was able to secure 6th row seats - I have such mixed feelings about being on the "floor" at these things.... there are things I LOVE about it, and there are things I HATE about floor seats.
The GOOD:
1. You get to be on camera, a lot....
2. The crowd in these sections are wild & fun!
3. There is a GREAT merch/concession/bathroom area down there that almost NOBODY goes to - no wait, no lines for anything! MORE on that coming up...
4. You really feel like you're part of the action down on the floor!
5. WE GOT TO KEEP THE SOUVENIR CHAIRS!!!!
The BAD:
1. The people in front of you are always standing up, forcing YOU to stand up....
2. The security guys are constantly SCREAMING at everyone to SIT DOWN.... and it goes on, and on....
3. It's a little hard to see sometimes, and I like taking a lot of photos (as some of you know)... that's a little harder to get a good angle from the floor! If you are on the side facing the hard camera - the wrestlers almost NEVER even LOOK in your direction (yes, I know, they're trained that way).... I got a lot of pictures of the backsides of wrestlers!
4. Kids have a real hard time seeing over the adults, especially when they're standing. But I wanted my son to have the experience of floor seats, so we went for it this time... it's frustrating when there are adults standing in the front rows.... and then the children behind them stand on their seats so that they can see something.... and security then yells at the KIDS to sit down.
5. You really hate to see the security guys screaming at everyone to sit down, because it's supposed to be fun.... and yet, no one can see when they're all standing.... it's such an awkward situation.....
Overall, I don't regret sitting on the floor.... but I wouldn't want to sit there EVERY time (unless I was able to get front-row)... my ideal seats are in the bleacher section, in the first five rows there..... I can get great photos, the crowd there is more laid back, and since the seats are tiered - I don't constantly feel like I'm blocking someone else's view (and other people aren't constantly blocking mine).
I'm sure that due to the Baltimore riots just a few weeks ago, security was extra tight.... No, J&J wasn't checking bags at the door - but it appeared that everyone was pretty much coming in through ONE entrance.... making the process very S-L-O-W.... we got there around 5:30 PM, sat in the car for a while (had no desire to wait in line, went down around 6:15.... the line moved so slowly, we didn't get in until the end of the Macho Mizdow match, so we ended up missing much of the pre-show.... oh well, I guess we didn't miss too much...
Anyway, let's get to the photos!
So, after the show... we stopped by that "special" concessions area to hit the potty one more time before getting on the road.... my buddy, my son, and I were taking some photos of ourselves with our new pieces of furniture.... as my buddy was taking a photo of my son and I, a group of people were walking towards us....
"Dan.... Dan.... turn around..... turn around!" I said...... then I said "Hello Renee Young!"
Renee and Corey Graves said "Hi" to me, as they photobombed our picture! Booker T was there too, he didn't say anything... and I was too starstruck to say anything else to them, but it was pretty cool!!!
So, overall, here is my view of the 2015 Payback PPV..... I had a lot of fun! I enjoyed our seats & our section.... The wrestlers worked their tails off... and the crowd worked hard, too, as they were super responsive to everything - I've decided that Baltimore is now one of my favorite crowds!
The problem with this PPV, as I discussed with my friend on the way back to the car.... is that NOTHING happened. No titles changed hands. No storylines advanced.... John Cena beat Rusev, AGAIN. Seth Rollins retained. Kane's NOT fired. New Day retained. Barrett lost to Neville, by a countout? Why, nothing was at stake anyway? What was the point?
At the end of WWE Payback 2015.... we are exactly where we were a week ago.... and two weeks ago.... and three weeks ago. This PPV didn't change anything, and nothing was resolved. It as about as eventful as an episode of Smackdown. And pretty much nothing new was set up.... maybe Lana & Rusev are about to split, but that's it.
While I enjoyed the show for what it was... great wrestling matches and a lot of fun - there was just nothing especially memorable about it.
So, with that being said.... I'm going back into a "WWE break" for a little while.... I've got a few autograph signings and indy shows lined up in the next few weeks that I'm super excited for, I'm going to pour my energy (and my money) into those activities & give WWE a break for a little while, before I get too burned out on the product....
Thanks for looking & reading my long report!
-Flair Forever
Glad you had a decent time, my buddies and I definitely enjoyed ourselves. 
