The debut offering in Estevan by Canadian Wrestling's Elite didn't always go down smoothly, but what else would you expect from a troupe of grown men pretending to beat each other up in their underwear?
Truth be told, the little quirks that populate every live wrestling show were actually a big part of the charm as CWE invaded Estevan for the first time Monday at the Wylie Mitchell Hall.
Four-time Ring of Honor tag team champion Jimmy Jacobs didn't like the response he received when he was introduced to open the show, so returned to the dressing room and came back out to a slightly warmer response. The third time was the charm as Jacobs finally made his way to the ring with the estimated crowd of 250 suddenly doing its part.
"The Galaxy's Own" Mentallo landed the hardest punch of the night when he accidentally connected with the overhead heater while saluting the fans prior to his match with the Canadian Crazyhorse, Mike Elgin.
Not 15 minutes later, Big Daddy Kash cracked his head on the same apparatus while preparing for a top rope attack against Hotshot Danny Duggan.
Bad Ass Billy Gunn nearly fell on his face after tripping on the middle rope on his way into the ring,
And his partner, Road Dogg Jesse James, gave up halfway through trying to pronounce the Latin on the Royal Canadian Legion sign during an improvised version of his trademark pre-match speech.
In most cases, the wrestlers were quick with a joke or a smile for the fans nearest them to let them know that, yes, it was OK to laugh; that it doesn't always have to be a serious business.
No one in attendance, it seemed, demanded perfection and what they got for their forgiveness was a group willing to interact significantly with the crowd during every match.
Duggan, for instance, had a young fan put his foot on the guard rail before running Kash's face into it.
James, amused by a fan who yelled at Gunn that "real men wear pink" in reference to Gunn's bright pink trunks, encouraged the fan to "get that going as a chant." The fan complied and the chant ended up being the most popular of the night.
Rollins, still in character, even chased small children around the hall during intermission.
The highlight of course was the appearance by Gunn and James, who won five World Wrestling Federation tag team championships together as the New Age Outlaws.
Their familiar pre-match routine was repeated almost word-for-word by most of the crowd and they had their audience laughing through much of the match with their non-stop taunting of opponents A.J. Sanchez and Big Cliff Corleone.
Monday's event was the first on a four-date Saskatchewan tour for CWE.
Duggan, also the organization's promoter, suggested before the show that if all went well he would consider making Estevan a regular stop on CWE's schedule. Judging by Monday's response, that may be happening sooner than later.
