From Drew Blood: It’s awards season again. Being done with all the nonsense, I had forgotten the madness until a Facebook link poppe...
From Drew Blood:
It’s awards season again. Being done with all the nonsense, I had forgotten the madness until a Facebook link popped up about voting. And, no, I didn’t vote. And, to be clear, I think it’s a really strong batch of nominees in all categories. I can’t say there’s anyone that doesn’t deserve to be nominated. Now, of course, nominations and winning are two different things.
I really only care about one category: Manager of the Year. To my delight, there is a whole batch of guys nominated. But, really, only one deserves to win. You may have already cast your vote. And if you didn’t vote for Joseph Brock, then you are one of the “buddy only” voters that keep Georgia wrestling in a constant state of arrested development. “Just when it thought it was out, you keep pulling it back in.”
The awards are for 2019. So, I’m just going to get straight to the math. From December to June 2019, a well-booked, emphasized, full-strength JB Enterprises averaged 402 fans per show. The show reports are out there. The numbers are there. Descriptions of crowd reactions for your reading pleasure. Now, certainly the show (performers/booker/promoter) as a whole contributed to that success.
On the flip side- a de-emphasized (Drew Blood-less) JBE from June until now has passed the 300 mark just one time. That’s no knock. It’s respectable business. But it’s with a neutered Joseph Brock.
Wait, am I putting myself over? Of course! But I don’t want an award (I told Larry he could give me the Rodney Dangerfield Award- No respect). More importantly, I’m putting over the power of an unleashed Joseph Brock III. The leader of JBE, the most consistently over performer in Southern Fried history. I know pre-meltdown Ashworth was called “the face of Southern Fried” for storyline reasons. But, the true face of Southern Fried has ALWAYS been Joseph Brock III.
So what? Well, if the most over guy in the number 1(a) promotion in the state is a manager, I would suppose that would make him the manager of the year. Maybe that’s faulty logic? Maybe it’s just hard to hear.
Joseph is my best friend. Which is why I’m not voting for him (or at all- well, mainly because I just don’t care about the rest). I’m not just voting for my buddy. Dr. Joseph Brock III, more than any performer in the state, is a true character. The green jacket, glasses, and clip on tie are as recognizable as any single half-ass brand in Georgia wrestling. The big lips, messy, oily hair. He’s a cartoon- in the best sense of the word. He is instantly recognizable and repeatedly imitated.
The trick is that it comes off as completely natural. Every other manager just comes across as a guy pretending to be a wrestling manager. You don’t actually expect that guy to be his character when you meet him backstage. But, when you meet Joseph backstage, it’s jarring. He’s not a nerd. You can’t believe that he’s a normal guy (sort of).
I actually don’t think Joseph is the most skilled heel mic guy. That has always been a sort of (misguided) measuring stick for managers. Certainly, he’s a great mic guy (as a straight babyface commentator he has no peer in the state). But, Hankins or ol’ Jeff G. are probably better heel orators. It doesn’t matter. Because those guys swallow up their charges. They become the focal point and their “awesome” promos become the focus. Joseph Brock III is the one manager that enhances EVERY OTHER performer in the ring with him- ally or foe. He’s completely and utterly selfless (which is why he’ll never make a case for himself to win). His only focus is the story. And he’ll rise or fall for what best serves the angle and match.
Beyond that, he is the single most versatile performer in the state. Brock is capable of absurd comedy and complete deviousness- all within the same show. He never compromises his character nor do the shifts require any leaps of logic. It all fits. It’s all natural and smooth. No other manager can open a show with complete comedy and close it with white-hot heat. He can manage buffoons or serious monsters- and it works every time. Other candidates just can’t swing it. They’re limited by their characters. They can’t sustain the versatility.
I could make a case that Drew Blood was the single biggest draw as a performer from 2018-2019 (I’ve got the numbers). However, it wouldn’t be completely true. Drew Blood isn’t the only performer in those numbers. It was a team- Drew and Joseph and Jagged and Brian and Tetchi. When Todd gave us the greenlight to main-event, a fully loaded JBE vs Southern Fried babyfaces drew historic crowds. It wouldn’t have been half as successful without Brock leading the charge. (Group of the year? Nah, we only drew the biggest crowds in two decades…)
At one point, a quarter of the crowd was wearing green jackets. We had fans paying fifty bucks a show to have a poster naming JB Enterprises as a “sponsor.” Joseph has been sought out to do commercials for local businesses. Online radio shows have their biggest viewership when he co-hosts. He has fans from Germany sending him chocolates and candy! I can’t speak for David Manders and I’ve never asked him this. But, I bet if you get him off to the side, he would tell you his most profitable star is/was/has always been Joseph Brock III. Joseph provides true value.
I understand that fans don’t vote (don’t agree, but understand). But that puts guys without a spot at the “cool kids” table at a distinct disadvantage. It seems, in years past, the gold standards were things like “how many shows does he work?” or “what kind of cute promo can he cut?” The actual metric of putting assess in seats is disregarded simply because so few can actually do it. Dr. Joseph Brock III can. And he deserves your respect (and vote).
Now, Ethel is calling me back to my game of checkers and glass of Ovaltine.
.jpg)
.png)
.png)
