Faking BrayFabe #1: The Concept

Throughout the history of professional wrestling there have been monumental events, angles, stories, character and gimmicks that could’ve easily gone another direction and either drastically the change the course of the future or having very little change but that one change still being constant.

Within the confines of DC Comics and Marvel this idea has been constantly explored.  In DC they call it Elseworlds.  In Marvel it was known as “What If?’.  Some of my favorite comics stories of all time have come from these particular annuals, graphic novels and series.  It is something could easily be applied to wrestling in many major ways.

Here’s a small list of some of the ideas I’m playing with:

What if the Issac Yankem gimmick was successful and got expanded to a stable with a X-ray tech and an anesthesiologist?

“What if James Storm joined Chris Harris in ECWWE?”

“Fallen Angel doesn’t get injured in Nitro debut”

“CM Punk never went straight edge”

“Kevin Nash and Scott Hall never left WCW/never left the WWF to go back to WCW”

I have a short dream list of artists based purely on their previous wrestling illustrations, none that have agreed to be part of the project as of yet, but it is a dream.

(special thanks to Sam “Eddie Phoenix” Fines for helping come up with the concept and cementing it in stone with a name.)

(My first follow up will be me fleshing out one of the actual what if’s further and drawing one of my own to get the ball rolling… also research into other artists who not only draw wrestlers but understand and LOVE wrestling…I don’t want just cool illustrations, I want the passion of folks who get what they’re doing, not just photo referencing stuff)

R.I.P. Macho Man

(above photo taken by me at a 2006 CD signing in NYC)

On May 20, 2011, Randall Poffo, best known to the world as “Macho Man” Randy Savage was unwrapped from his mortal coil.  Reports account his death occurring from a combination heart attack and fatal car accident.

Savage was easily one of my favorite of all time.  He brought everything I liked about wrestling into a secure package.  Flamboyancy, technical athletics, insane rumblings, maniacal interviews and a never say die attitude.  When everyone went right, he went left.  I’d say his promos and raps tell his tale better than anything ever could.

Sugar was sweet and so was honey.  Macho Man went to the top, fell down, got back up and went to the top again.  The mountain was there standing like a pillar of salt and he just tossed it behind his back like a rock, paper, scissors.  You don’t see the steamroller coming till it’s ahead of you and you’ve been flattened out.  An elbowdrop from the top is what it was all about.  Yellow and Pink, Purple and green, red and black, colors bleed and so does blood.  Hardcore before there was hardcore, he piledrove Ricky Morton on a table and it didn’t break.  That hurts more than breakaway.

Did he become a joke with his rap album or just cement his legend of insanity and unpredictability?  I say the second, you can disagree.  It doesn’t matter, because heres to the Macho Man.

Hoping he’s off in some afterlife back together with Miss Elizabeth after their break up almost 20 years ago.  Or maybe he’s with Sherri.  He has his pick, he’s the Macho Man!