The Up & Under 05.02.08: A Fond Farewell

Who am I? Just some punk kid.

I’m a baby in the IWC, with a weekly column for a niche market and a couple of editorial credits to my name. I’ve had my bright spots, sure, but I’m a long way off from the glory days of Grut and Keith and Hyatte and Szulczewski.

Do you remember when you first came to 411mania? For me it was all the way back in the 411wrestling days, when Scott Keith made the move here from a dying Wrestleline. I’d guess there are more than a few of you in the same boat. For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, imagine a wrestling landscape where ECW was still run by Paul Heyman, WCW was still viable (or at the very least “viable”), and companies like Ring of Honor and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla were still years from existence.

Fast forward if you will to “The Split”. Now 411wrestling is a ghost, replaced by the 411mania you know and love today (well, more or less). A lot of top “names” in the IWC jump ship to start up Inside Pulse with Widro and 411 gets left for dead. But something weird happened; 411 endured. Oops.

You’ve got names like Csonka and Randle and Hayhurst and Gamble moving to the forefront and some newer names like Berenstein moving up the ladder. Oh, and some guy named Ziegler, too. With all of them working at full tilt, 411mania not only endured, it grew and grew and grew. And somewhere along the line, Brad Garoon started writing stuff.

Let’s shift forward again, this time to December of 2006. 411’s looking for new writers, and I guess they were looking for someone to fill the ‘punk kid’ slot. And how about that, a punk kid with love of ROH and some time to kill just so happened to sit down and write the framework of what would eventually come to be known as The Independent Mid-Card. Sure, it was originally called Welcome to the Indie Mid-Card (a far sillier and inferior title) and was a lot shorter in its infancy than it would become later, but the seeds of mediocrity were clearly already there.

And then Samoa Joe went and left ROH and someone (hint: it was me) had a bright idea to use 411’s roundtable concept to discuss the matter. I still remember getting chastised on the staff forums by O’Sullivan like it was yesterday. From there grew the regular ROH Roundtables and with them more responsibility for a doe-eyed newbie.

And then someone came up with the bright idea to do a Fact or Fiction that catered specifically to the Independent scene. I think it was John Gregory, but Mancuso actually deserves the credit for making it into Buy or Sell. I was holding out for Oddsmakers, but that’s neither here nor there. Two months in, due to a shift in something or other, Larry offers the job of keeping Buy or Sell going to me. I mean, hey, why not. I guess I’m not so mediocre after all. Somewhere along the way in here, Larry started calling me ‘Sammy’, but for the life of me I can’t be bothered to go back and dig up when that began. Oh, and I wrote a few editions of The Box in the Attic until my VCR gave out on me.

In June of 2007, I got the chance to meet another 411 writer in person for the first time. Two of them actually: the Garoon & Ziegler ROH reviewing combo. A month or so later, I met up with Ari Berenstein & Stu Carapola at a TGI Friday’s in Manhattan while I was in town making ill-fated personal decisions (and seeing a Dispatch concert). I think it took until those meetings for me to really feel a part of the 411 team for the first time, no matter how much writing I was doing and how many columns I was juggling. And though I liked meeting all four of them, it certainly seemed more likely that I was going to be seeing and speaking with Brad & Jake more often in the future. I mean Michigan is closer than New York anyway.

Let’s jump ahead a few months once again; this time to November, when (in an incredibly rare move for me) I decide that I actually want another pair of eyes on one of my columns. If you’re curious, it’s the second edition of The Up & Under. For whatever reason (probably because he’s an excellent writer), I messaged Brad asking for a second pair of eyes. A few of his notes later, the column that got posted was finished. After that, Brad and I started talking more regularly.

Now, I’ve got to expose myself a bit here for what I really am: a mark. An absolutely HUGE mark. See, I’ve never really gotten over how strange it is to be a part of the 411 machine. I was reading Brad and Jake and Ari and Stu and Campbell and Bayani and Dunn long before I got brought on as a writer, and the notion that I email them on a near weekly basis asking them to take part in a column is still a little ludicrous to me. In fact, and I’ve told them this before so they can vouch for it, I first got into Ring of Honor because of Brad & Jake’s glowing review for Manhattan Mayhem.

So when Brad and I decided to start our own podcast one snowy afternoon in December, needless to say I was incredibly excited. I mean, here I was getting to talk about wrestling with one of my favorite writers. With Jake on board shortly thereafter, The Cool Kids’ Table was born.

At first, the Table was just a fun side project; a way for the three of us to discuss things in a more informal setting. But then things started picking up steam. There was actually a moment there where the podcast might have ended up on 411, but real life interjected itself and it wasn’t to be. I’m not going to bore you with the details, but suffice that Jake was fired from 411 and Brad, standing by his longtime friend and the guy who got him onto 411 in the first place, took his leave of the site. I won’t lie that I thought about walking with them, but in the end staying a part of 411mania seemed like the right move for everyone.

So what does all of this mean?

I’m making a move that I probably would have made in January if I were a better man instead of some punk kid. On some levels, I’m already a figment of your imagination as far as 411mania is concerned. But I’m not dead yet. I’m just taking my permanent seat at The Cool Kids’ Table.

Frankly, I have to give it up to Larry Csonka, who has been gracious enough to let me stick around for special projects and roundtables and Wrestler of the Week and such. Yes, that’s right folks, I’m still going to be doing Wrestler of the Week. Got to love what dedication can earn you, huh? Oh, and I’m spearheading a special event that’s already in the works, so don’t be shocked when you see my name on the byline over the next month or so.

Neither Brad nor Jake nor I think that this move will be the earth-shattering split that the IP one was, but then we’re not doing this to try to compete with 411. We’re doing it out of necessity and personal drive. Sometimes you’ve just got to own your destiny, ya know?

Before I go, however, there are a few people that I want to publicly address, though I’m not going to get all sappy on you.

Ari Berenstein, Mike Campbell, Matt Short & Bayani Domingo are the four writers on 411 who I make it a point to read every week. Keep reading their stuff, though I’m not going to be around to plug it. Also, a big special thank you to Ari and Michael Bauer for picking up the slack on the ROH Roundtables and Buy or Sell respectively. They’re going to totally outclass me anyway, so trust me that you readers are better off.

Larry Csonka is a good guy who took a few big chances on a punk kid. Thanks for always accepting my lame excuses and for encouraging me to stick with things. I have said this to you before, but you have been an incredible editor and have pushed me to up my game at every turn. In a perfect world, I’d have enough time to dedicate myself fully to both sites, but sometimes you’ve got to put your mouth where your money is.

To all the Wrestler of the Week haters: go fuck yourselves. I worked hard for 411 every week for almost a year-and-a-half. When you nut up and get yourselves involved, THEN you can complain about me voting for a Japanese tag team or the ROH World Champion instead of some chick from TNA or whoever just won the Intercontinental Title in a four-minute match. Until then, how about you get your heads out of your asses and get over it. Oh, and I’m SO TOTALLY shocked that none of you tough guys ever had the balls to email me directly with a well-reasoned argument. Cowards.

To anyone who cares: I still read everything I can from Scott Keith, and I couldn’t care less if you think he’s washed up.

To my readers: thanks for taking the time to read my columns every week. I cannot honestly think of a negative interaction with one of you the entire time I wrote for 411. Writing may be cathartic, but when I’m done dealing with my own shit, the truth is that I want you to enjoy what you’re reading. I hope you’ll stick with me at my new place.