One week from now I'll be landing in Dallas to experience my first ever Mania Week. It might, then, surprise you to find out that I'm likely not going to Mania at all. (It's not out of the cards if we somehow find some cheap tickets, but at the moment it's not in the plans).
Don't get me wrong, I've always wanted to go to a big PPV, but I'm not sure I want this to be my first experience. I haven't watched WWE's weekly shows since May 2019 and I've barely kept up with the past few PPVs. The Rumble is my favourite of all because it's almost impossible to screw it up, and yet, somehow...
So this year, I'm focusing on the indie shows at The Collective featuring some of my favourite up-and-comers and established stars. I'm also unreasonably excited about the food truck fair. God I love a food truck.
Here are the 5 shows I'm most psyched about seeing during Mania Week:
1) Joey Janela's Spring Break Part 1 & 2
Not only are these cards stacked so far, Spring Break has this amazing aura around it that I can't wait to finally experience. My friends from home that I'm going to Dallas with have attended all the Spring Breaks so far and always talk about how this show is always a banger. Breakout stars, much-talked-about moments, debauchery. I'm up for all of it. Plus I get to see the Death Match King, Matt Cardona go up against Dirty Daddy Chris Dickinson???? Let's fucking go.
2) Planet Death
I love myself a fucking death match, so I am absolutely psyched to end the first day of The Collective with this night of mayhem. Cole Radrick absolutely stole the show at the last GCW event I attended in February, and I can't wait to see him go head-to-head with Akira. And after seeing the brutal junkyard match from Zone 23 featuring Sadika, I really can't wait to see her go up against Jimmy Lloyd (whose entrance theme has been stuck in my head since seeing him wrestle probably 5 times in 3 days back in February). There are so many good match ups set for this show - I can't wait to call everyone a bunch of sick fucks.
3) For the Culture
Alright, I'm not gonna lie, while this show is stacked (great job, AJ!), there's really one person that makes this an absolute must-see for me, and that's The Revolutionary, Darius Lockhart. I've been wanting to see him live for a while now - he's one of the best promos in the game, it blows me away every time how good he is. So I'm excited to finally see him live in the ring. I'm also so stoked to see Bryan Keith again after seeing him in Atlantic City. Definitely one of my standouts from that weekend and can't wait to see him up against the legend, Too Cold Scorpio. Tasha Steelz and Big Swole is another match from this card I'm anticipating will be an absolute banger.
4) Effy's Big Gay Brunch
For the last few BGBs, my friends and I have gotten together to make brunch and watch the show, so it means a lot that I'll be able to finally experience the show live with my best brunch pals! It's always just so perfect - wrestling with the camp turned up to 11. And isn't that the best part of wrestling to begin with? I've been loving Dark Sheik's work any time I've seen her and so I'm looking forward to her match up against Parrow. I've also heard so much about Max the Impaler but haven't had the chance to see any of their matches and I'm excited to almost certainly have my mind blown. Not to mention the twink gauntlet is bound to be a party and a half. But I'd be lying if I said the match I'm most excited for was anything other than Dirty Dango vs Allie Katch. A match truly made for us bisexuals.
5) Unsanctioned Pro
I'll be honest, I thought about putting The Wrld on Lucha show as my 5th pick, because damn do I ever love me some flippy shit. But I actually went with Unsanctioned Pro for a sentimental reason. One of my best pals I've made through wrestle twitter lives in Ohio and it's her home promotion. I'm not as familiar with the card, but half the fun of going to a live show, I think, is discovering new talent you may not be as familiar with. I want to see all her favourites in action, because I know if my home promotion was running a show, I'd be wanting all my pals to come see the folks who make me love wrestling on a regular basis. Ultimately, that's the thing I'm most excited about next week: making moments with my friends. If going to indie shows for the past few years has taught me anything, wrestling is really about the friends you meet along the way.
So next week in Dallas, let's have a good time. Let's make some friends. Make some memories. And enjoy some fucking wrestling.