Post by A Ghost in the Wind on Mar 28, 2015 10:08:51 GMT -5
I wanted to take the time out to discuss a few issues that has plagued PCW in some way or form throughout its history. I hope that by the time I'm done with this, more questions were answered than raised.
PCW's “Reality”
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Pure Class Wrestling does not exist outside the realm of our collective imaginations. We're all just playing an imaginary game, using our awesome imaginations to create a vibrant, beautiful game. But, while the universe we create in PCW is unique and specific to us, where we can pretty much defy any “law” and get away with it, there still has to be some sense of structure and reality if we're going to play it “the right way in PCW.” Here are some common problems and my response to them:
Official Postings by PCW
Unless you're a member of the Management Team in Pure Class Wrestling, you are not permitted to write “official” PCW memos, news, or notes. You can rumor the sh*t out of pretty much anything, but once you attach that “Official PCW” tag in the post, you just broke PCW's Community Guidelines.
Please get permission from PCW Management if you wish to announce something as “true” to PCW; At the time of this writing, that means you'd need permission from either Rick Majors, Eira, or myself {A Ghost in the Wind}. You're more likely to hear back from Rick or Kris than you would me, but even they may need approval from me to make it official canon. Best bet is, if in doubt- ask.
Failure to retain the proper approval may result in your post being deleted, modified, or ignored from PCW canon. Continued breaking of the Guidelines may result in us terminating your membership from the promotion.
The above also goes for using select “PCW Staff Members” in your Rps and segments. Interviewers and other staff members where permission is not needed must retain the personalities created for them, unless approval to “take them out of character” is given.
Writing for Others
I was recently asked a really good question which was, “If Handler 1 writes a good chunk of Handler 2's RP, does Handler 2 get full credit for said RP?” The simple answer is- yes.
Whoever posts the RP- whether it was a joint RP, one written FOR another handler, or one that included writing from another handler – they're the person who receives credit. Because, at the end of the day, we're not judging based on “who wrote better,” we're judging on, “what posted RP is better by the rubric we have in place.”
It's kind of screwed up to write Rps for others...everyone should be judged based on their own work, but there's no way to fairly enforce that. The only thing I can judge on is what's posted, and the person who gets the credit is the person who posts it. The only way “controversy” can come out of it is if the person who posted plagiarized or used the writing of someone else without their permission. If a claim like that is brought up, an investigation will be had and a decision will be decided upon when the investigation is completed.
Supernatural Time-Traveling Magic
Another issue we often face is our penchant for breaking the Laws of Man. This has been mentioned in the official “Rules” of the fed, but I figured it can be elaborated on here. So what is our stance on mystical beings such as elves and magical sorcery?
Before I answer that, let me first state: What you see on Trauma and PPVs and “Specials” is a television show. A television show based around wrestling. So when the fans see anything “odd” or “goofy,” we can play it up and play it off as “TV magic.” Some “magic” comes across better than others, while others may give the viewer (i.e. the reader) an upset stomach at how cheesy it appeared. But again, most can be explained as the Magic of TV.
And honestly, I won't allow “kamayamayas” to shoot out of a person's hands randomly or allow blistering laser lights to shoot out of your eyes or anything to that effect because...well, no. That's not the type of “TV show” we're presenting. We have to base the “show” on what's “real” and “presentable.” It's just the way we do things here.
But here's the beauty of PCW- your Rps are unique to you. I generally do not limit creativity in the form of Rps...it just has to “make sense” when we present our “TV show.” So if you write in your RP about a different dimension and that's 100000000% the reality you want it to be, then that's your reality. But if another character wants to tell you you're nuts because there AREN'T other dimensions or that magic really doesn't exit or “you're not an elf...you're some weird, 6 foot 7 blue-haired freak who suffers from some bad Peter Pan Syndrome,” then they can do that to. Because you can't force your reality onto us.
PCW's Universe vs. “Real-World” Stuff (WWE, Celebrities, and Sports)
Okay, this is the toughest, yet easiest one to answer. I think.
What do we consider special to the PCW Universe and what do we consider “borrowed” from real-life stuff? Nothing and everything is the answer.
PCW, like any fictional environment, is not held down by the reality of what's going on outside of our imagination, but that does not mean we cannot borrow or be inspired from real-life stuff. The best example of what we should be aiming for is comic books...but I'm not going to get into that in-depth so I'll try and explain a different way.
Everything that happens outside of “PCW's Universe” still happens- World events, local events, movies, celebrities, etc. But obviously not everything is still THE same. If it did, Mike, the handler of Mr. Showtime, would be a real-life movie star, Justin, the handler of Stormm, would really be a head of a multi-[blank] dollar corporation, and “The Icemann” would really own the “Chick 'N' Strip” stripclub chain he has. But obviously, these are things that don't exist in the real-world.
Similarly, Simon, as far as I know, was not trained in Japan to be a brutal fighting chick, Dee Snider of Twizted Sister has no friggin' clue who we are, and Frank Foley does not look a lot like Bruce Willis.
Most “crimes” that occur in PCW (mainly assault) can be written and explained in a way that gets everyone off the hook, but some things still need legit explanations (like murders), so if you want to use those plot devices, be sure not to paint yourself in a corner; it'll be tough to get out of if you do.
PCW's Universe is unique and subjective to what we make it out to be. There's no “right” or “wrong” but if I feel it cannot be supported as canon, I'll make that call at the moment. At this point, we play it by ear.
Now, what is PCW's stance on real-world organizations and promotions? Well, like I stated above, we definitely inspire our universe on real-life stuff. But one thing I wanted to specify is exactly what PCW - Pure Class Wrestling - is.
PCW is considered a “real” sport. The fighting in the ring is considered “real.” And the reason we're not “hurt” as badly as we would be in “the real world” is because we're super people who train really hard and stuff. ...Yeah, let's go with that. That, and...this game is fiction, so we can, as stated a ton of times before, pretty much do anything we want. So here's how the Company works:
Wrestlers are paid per fight. They may be “contractually obligated” to fight “x amount of matches,” or they may be on a “pay-per-appearance” contract. Some fighters are paid “more” while others are paid in experience. Most of the details can be worked out by the handler, but if inspiration is needed or specific questions need answering, just bring it up with a member of Management and we'll figure something out.
There's “random drug testing,” but...let's be fair, whitey not only had been Champion, but had also been Champion while on benders. Obviously, we use the drug testing as a plot device and can use it and enforce it when necessary.
Now how does this play into WWE and the like? Well, WWE, TNA, and many “real-life promotions” are defined by PCW as “sports entertainment.” Not necessarily the “sport AND entertainment” that PCW is. I ask that you DO NOT use real-life wrestlers (and if PCW ever became a business, there'd be a legal standing as to why not), but if you have to, I ask that you know the difference between Our World and theirs.
...We're sport...we're more related to UFC than WWE in the terms of fighting...but we're a television entertainment company as well, so we do all the WWE inspired stuff, like angles and show building. Similarly, celebrities and sports stars brought in have to know the difference (or at least imply there is a difference) between the WWE, other sports, and PCW. They don't have to specifically state it, but you as the writer need to know the difference.
...Annnnddd....I think that's all I had at the moment. Please, if you have questions on anything I just posted, or anything I didn't answer and you want answered, please ask below.
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) but wouldn't -everyone- be technically dead to you at that point?