By Nathan Kyght, PWTorch PPV specialist

A resistance is underway.

On November 25 of last year, Gabriel Baron and his brother Jacques joined forces with Billy Corgan to present the first show of their company Resistance Pro, in what they felt would be a revolution of sorts; a new wrestling company that reflected the attitudes and ideas they had always felt were important to them. They thought about a company that blended both men’s and women’s wrestling with equal importance, storylines that were allowed to breathe rather than be rushed through, and a focus on the things that wrestling, to them, used to be: characters, great matches, and moments you remembered.

The company seemed to me as one that would allow newcomers a shot, give a home to wrestlers that had perhaps not made it in other companies due to whatever reason, and bring in stars of the past as invaluable assets not just in front of the camera, but in those moments backstage when a "new guy" walks up and says, "What do you think I could have done better?”

The first time I spoke to the three men, they were excited, quietly cautious, but above all the conversation was exactly the kind of conversation that you would have with any of your friends about wrestling: "Did you see that match? Remember that promo?" There was no doubt that while these are businessmen, they are as true to their belief in the idea of what they want pro wrestling to be as any fan. It was refreshing.

Last month, I chatted with Gabriel Baron, who still exuded the same passion and happiness that he did when we spoke last year.

BLACK FRIDAY

“That first night at the ‘Black Friday’ show was great, but it was so busy for us backstage that we hardly had a chance to see anything," he recalled. “In fact, there was a mix-up with the security detail and Jacques and I ended up having to do security for a bit, standing on different floors,” he laughed. “But, the show was great, it’s just funny that we had to wait to watch it afterwards. We had talent coming backstage and asking how they did and we had to say that we couldn’t tell them. It was such an amazing night, though."

Backstage that night was one of the creative minds that I feel makes the company what it is: Raven.

“Working with Raven is amazing. He said that the first night was overwhelming, but not in a bad way you know? We sat downstairs (at the Excalibur) afterwards and he was saying, “We have to do this, the entrances have to be this way, we should have done that,” but I think that’s what makes it such an interesting company because once the crowd is gone it wasn’t like anyone just said, 'good.' Everyone said, 'Now, how do we make it even better?'"

Currently, Resistance Pro is distributing their shows through DVD only, which has been criticized in some circles online. To me? I think it's a very canny marketing method: I mentioned in our last conversation the excitement you would feel as a "tape trader" waiting for the matches you had only read about to show up in your mailbox.

Well, I knew what happened at "Black Friday" and I still anticipated the DVD arriving at my house. There's something about creating anticipation, about the word of mouth. If you do something good and the word spreads, the anticipation mounts. Caring about things worth caring about is worth your time.

“Right now we’re just going to put the shows out on DVD, and we’ve had a nice response, and I think the show looks really good on the Black Friday DVD," Gabriel said.

I believe Gabriel is right. It looks like a prison riot, crossed with an underground fight club. There are high-angle camera shots, the crowd is stood. It looks like chaos about to happen. It looks like the edge.

Kevin Steen deserves a mention here, as his performance in the main event against Harry Smith was absolutely one of my personal favorites of the year (and I see A LOT of wrestling). Steen is so in-tune with his character, so perfectly at ease with his manipulation of the crowd, that you cannot help to be enthralled with the storytelling. And, it offered a match that Resistance Pro needed, devoid of complication, just wrestling as it was: the “bad” guy vs. the “good” guy, Harry Smith.

Simplicity. It was excellent. And, then the lights went down, and the ring was pulled apart, and instead of patting themselves on the back, they went to work.

RISE

“Going into the second show, we knew what we wanted to change. Nothing drastic, but of course you’re your own worst critic," Gabriel laughed. “And, the show ended up coming across really well, and the feedback was awesome. Again, you kind of don’t have perspective on the show as it's happening as you’re so focused on just getting through it, so you kind of have to wait until it’s over to really appreciate what’s been done."

When asked if the general mission statement of Resistance Pro had changed at all based on the experience of the first show, Gabriel remained unwavering: “It’s still exciting. It’s still that mix of the old-school and the new-school. We can’t be Dragon Gate, you know? But, we can put out a product that we’re proud of."

Of course, no second show is complete without a sophomore jinx. “This time the show ran much more smoothly, but it’s the little things that pile up. Seemingly easy things like flights and hotels, and all of a sudden it’s overwhelming. But, we got through.”

I get that impression from the Resistance Pro folks. They’ll get through.

GROWING

The company has offered two more shows since we spoke, crowning Harry Smith as champion and involving him in a feud with Rhino that has produced some awesome in-ring moments. It’s also worth noting that true to his word, Billy Corgan has not been some sort of invisible partner out there in the back, and has indeed appeared on the show numerous times, often hands-on and in the middle of segments involving the promotion's title.

“Billy always said he would be hands-on, and not just some figurehead,” says Gabriel. “And, his passion for the project is obvious.”

The company also never strayed from its belief that women’s wrestling should be moved into the forefront as they have continually pushed the importance of their women’s division and treated the match-ups as marquee contests.

Personally? My favorite moment thus far has been Rhino agreeing to put his ECW Title on the line against Harry Smith, as he was the last champion (not counting WWECW), and thus felt he had claim to the title. Ah, ECW. It gets through.

THE HORIZON

Each of the shows since has been received well by wrestling fans in attendance and those that have since waited anxiously for the DVDs; I have a theory that Resistance Pro may be secretly trying to start a network of tape-traders, but that’s just me. I kid, but I think that the core of this promotion is as interesting as anything currently being offered by the wrestling industry.

They have thus far struck a balance between catering to older fans with recognizable veterans and, most importantly, giving new wrestlers a shot that perhaps they wouldn’t get elsewhere.
And, isn’t that what it should all be about?

In order for an industry to thrive and succeed, there always has to be those moments, those opportunities for someone to get his or her shot and to keep the business evolving, interesting, and healthy.

It’s great to have the familiar faces, but ultimately the future of the wrestling business is in the hands of wrestlers you haven’t heard of yet. Guys and girls in wait. Newcomers.

And, that’s the thing about newcomers. Because the first thing you need to be a legend is a chance. Once upon a time, someone named Billy Corgan walked into an open mic night with a guitar, and someone said “Sure, kid. Plug in.”

Resistance Pro runs its next show tonight (Friday, May 11) in Chicago, Ill. Read more about the latest from the promotion at ResistancePro.com .

[Torch photo (c) PWTorch.com]

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