Agression 35 and TiT excitement

My first match was a big one at EPW. "The Phenom" Shawn Jessica Hart, PhD. is one of the toughest guys to roleplay against because he never gives you anything to pick apart. He's mastered being an entertaining read and has more one-liners than "The Quintessential Studmuffin" Joel "Put your lipstick on my dipstick" Gertner.

My last match was against Big Dog was a lot like this one for this reason. Shawn is the self-procliamed "menagerie of non-sense" while Big Dog takes a more serious approach. They both really pushed me to dig for content to use in our matches and I learned a lot from both. These are the kinds of matches I really enjoy because they push my creativity. I was busy as hell this week and thought I was toast once I realized I sniped via EPW rules, but luckily the show had a twist where Hart and I will meet again at Black Dawn.

I'll be in a battle royale with James Irish, Shawn and Cameron Cruise. I have history with two of the three, and I've talked with Tom a little bit over PM. I'm especially eager for this one.

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This show is the first EPW event I've read from beginning to end. I like what I saw and laughed out loud half a dozen times.

"Davey, you are the only man on the planet that can make a sport where half-naked, oiled-up muscleheads in spandex tights roll around with each other on the ground seem even gayer than it appears to the naked eye."

Really got a kick out of that one. I thought the Stalker/Caitlyn match was the most gripping one of the night. I was on the edge of my chair reading that one. I enjoyed my match a lot and I was shocked by the TV title shot later in the show. I'll do everything I can to make sure I don't waste this opportunity.

Chul Sol was quite the character. I read it more like a promotional segment than a match. Considering we're both new I'm willing to bet our paths will cross sometime soon. I like Fusenshoff fighting big men because The Domination is my favorite finisher, but I really like The Whiskey Bomb too. It combines the X-Factor and the Famouser as a hybrid-spur of the moment finisher Fusenshoff uses on big men and as a surprise attack.

I really liked the "unlikely alliance" video over the Titantron. Mysterious anticipation stuff like that is really fun. I love trying to guess ahead of time and depicting the clues.

The whole show seemed to be set up for a Rocko win in the main event, between the Stalker/Caitlyn match and the Stalker/Stevens alliance. He still had to earn it rping this week. I skimmed the thread before reading and thought Rocko would win with the extra rp to seal it. I've lost to Tom's Thrillbillies twice, so I know how tough he can be to beat.

It was a fun read and really sets the mood well for Black Dawn. I really like what I read tonight.

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The TEAM Invitational Tournament starts this week and I have a match as Ace Mason. I have more trouble writing with him because I don't have his personality and 'angle' set in stone yet. Consistency is important with a character for the readers and for the handler. Promos are much smoother and fluent when we know our character's inside and out.

Ace is in the tourney because I told Tom to add him if he needs spots filled. I'm glad he was added because he's good practice for Fusenshoff. I approach writing with him very differently and with a different mindset. I can't really explain this, but I feel it may add a dimension to my writing that could be a deciding factor if I make it deep in this tournament.

Either way this is my favorite time of year in this hobby. The tournament is a lot of fun and the hype for it is huge. I love that TEAM brings together so many different handlers with a wide range of backgrounds. My competitive personality really thrives in this tournament. It feels great knowing there's so many big names I might get a chance to banter back and forth with.