Hey now.
So, it’s been two days since my first Legends of the Ring convention and I still have a wide smile plastered on my face. It was that awesome of an experience and I’m already looking forward to Legends XXI in October.
I posted a detailed recap of my experience but I still have some more random thoughts I’d like to share:
-Man, this Legends of the Ring was loaded with former ECW talent. Here’s the list of ECW alumni that attended the event: “The Franchise” Shane Douglas (who was unadvertised), Rob Van Dam, Danny Doring, The Amish Roadkill (who was a vendor at the event), Mick Foley, Dean Malenko, Bully Ray, Raven, Justin Credible, Sabu, New Jack, Stevie Richards, Nova, The Blue Meanie, Jimmy Snuka, and Big Sal. Seriously, that’s a pretty significant group of ECW talent and any fan of the old Philadelphia promotion could’ve cleaned up with photo ops/autographs.
-Speaking of New Jack, I’m really curious why he bothers to come to these events. It’s painfully clear he doesn’t enjoy his interactions with the fans, which is fine. Some fans are obnoxious and/or REALLY “markish” (which we know he hates) and I get he’s only there to make money. But just standing there with this annoyed gazed on your face for a few hours seems like a silly way to bring in fans, who in turn give him what he’s seeking the most: money. Part of the reason I didn’t get an autograph was because of his demeanor. Maybe it was a bad day but…
-Also, how awesome is this photo? Leva Bates, known to NXT fans as Blue Pants, posing with the bWo. It’s moments like this that make me love going to these cons.
-I was overwhelmed at the generosity Jim Cornette showed all his fans. He gave out free autographs and photo ops. FREE. Of course, he was hoping you’d buy something he was selling but you know what? He had the right approach and his merchandise was actually really cool stuff. Mr. Cornette will forever have a fan in me.
-It would be remiss of me if I didn’t mention the generosity of Shane Douglas as well. He was sincerely one of the nicest wrestlers I’ve ever spoken to and I was blown away at how easy going he was. I have – and now always will be – a fan of “The Franchise.”
-I’m amazed the first block of the Super Ticket went more smoothly than the second. I was a G.A. ticket holder but purchased several individual passes for their Super Ticket guests. I was practically in and out of the first block but I waited much longer for the 2nd. BUT, I do have to give a shout out to a LOTR Staff Member who took it upon himself to personally escort me to Bart Gunn’s empty line and then right to the Outlaws. Yes, he had me cut the GIGANTIC line but it would’ve been ludicrous waiting on that line for two guests. Good job by him.
-Speaking of the staff, I found them all very pleasant. I didn’t hear great things from previous convention-goers and whoever runs their Facebook page is a little abrasive but that didn’t come through day of the event.
-My girlfriend and I ate at Yogi’s, the hotel’s restaurant. Want to know something INSANE? It looks like they had ONE waitress working the lunch shift. ONE. I felt very, very bad for that young lady (who appeared to be new) because she was getting several complaints. But the people to blame are the ones who do the scheduling.
-And we’ll end on a good point: one thing I really loved about Legends was the intimacy of the vendor room. You could be shopping for figures and all of a sudden there’s Curt Hawkins shopping alongside you! Or Jimmy Snuka bumps into you and apologies. At Big Event, they really utilized the entire first floor of the hotel – don’t get me wrong, that had its benefits – but I really enjoyed the set-up of the vendor room. I initially thought it was overwhelming but, after a couple of days to mull it over, I really liked it.
Squared Circle Conventions 