In order to provide a consistent view of the entire Spring Season, the
DCWL staff is now presenting a Month in Review article, in which each
staff member has an individual opportunity to make their opinions,
predictions, and suggestions known to all.  

We now present to you the first ever "DCWL Month in Review" article,
for the month of February 2003.  The comments below are coming from the
following three indiviuals:

<>  JP Decosse, DCWL Kingfish 
<>  John Bergin, DCWL Queenfish
<>  Aaron Bentley, DCWL Mongerfish

Hopefully, this process will allow for healthy praise to those who
deserve it, and constructive criticism for those who could benefit from
it.  If you have any questions or concerns regarding the content below,
please contact us by sending email to [email protected].  


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JP DECOSSE : Best Match of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

When looking at the best match over a given period of time, a number of
factors must be taken into consideration: the progression of
storylines, the actual in-ring action, and the manner in which all
characters involved benefit from the experience.

In this case, my pick for the best match of February 2003 was lacking
in the progression of current storylines (although it did pick up an
old WWA feud, which for those familiar with it was a treat), but made
up for it with one of the best fight sequences I've ever read in
e-wrestling.

WINNER:  Bedrock -vs- Matt Cole
(War of the Words, Feb. 4th, by Alex Mann)

Truthfully, it was this match that lead to Bedrock's speedy fall from
his unstoppable image, opening him up to Jack Ketch's brutal attack,
the loss of the Purebreed Championship to Ike Pentagon, and a measure
of revenge for Cousin Cletus.  Matt Cole hasn't really been heard from
since this match, unfortunately, making it lose a lot of its historical
significance.  Nonetheless, this match single-handedly turned around
the Purebreed Division in the eyes of many players, who specifically
commented to me how much they enjoyed reading it, and were surprised to
see it on WOTW, which had previously been a home for short,
non-progressive, uninteresting matches.  

RUNNER-UP:  BadBoy JC Blake -vs- 'Mr. Showtime' Mark Haley
(Total Dementia, Feb. 14th, by Aaron Bentley)

In this match, we had a return to another old WWA issue that ended far
too quickly, and at the same time, helped to solidify both characters
in their respective roles as heel and face within the current DCWL
roster.  Blake's spot with the wooden spike was the pivitol moment in
bringing him back to his old violent anarchy days, with a new hardcore
edge, which we're still seeing the growth of today.  Mr. Showtime has
been on the sidelines since this match, but has a ready-made hot feud
waiting for him, once he returns from this injury.

In this categoy, I deliberately strayed from picking any main event
matches, since most were written by myself.  


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

AARON BENTLEY : Best Match of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

WINNER: Guido the Great -vs- Skye Ashner 
(Total Dementia, Jan. 31st, by Jeremy Cash)

First of all, since the Jan. 31st Total Dementia was the first show of 
the Spring Season, the DCWL staff decided it had to be included. 
Anyway, this match was wonderful, first of all, in terms of actual
wrestling.  Jeremy did a great job of churning out a beautiful match. 
The psychology was nice and all the spots flowed so well that I could
see the match in my mind.  Also, the match was hot on the trail of the
new Skye Ashner/Tawny Blake thing and it told a wonderful story.

RUNNER-UP: Guido/MD -vs- Cap/Skye -vs- Tawny/IDP
(Total Dementia, Feb. 14th, by JP Decosse)

As usual, JP delivered another wonderful main event.  The best part 
about this match and JP's matches in general was/is that the story
never gets lost.  I always know what's going on and how a story is
developing throughout the match.  Wonderful job.


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JOHN BERGIN : Best Match of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

WINNER: Guido/MD -vs- Cap/Skye -vs- Tawny/IDP 
(Total Dementia, Feb. 14th, by JP Decosse)

This match told a great story, and the action put into it was superb.
This match was just so fun to read, and I saw so many things coming out
of it, and it was a very interesting combination. Excellence in this
match, it featured many of the top dogs in the DCWL, and they had their
chance to shine here.

RUNNER UP: Too many were too great in my book, but I'll note Skye -vs-
Guido and Guido -vs- Tawny as two of the runners up... but so many of
those were excellent... too hard for me to narrow it down to one... 


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JP DECOSSE : Best Roleplay of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

Most definitely, this is hardest pick to make in the February 2003
Month in Review.  Practically every DCWL character had at least one
stand-out submission during the month, but narrowing it down to one
involves seeing who delivers the best character development, while
still touching on current DCWL events, and entertaining the reader.

WINNER: Tawny Blake
(War of the Words, Feb. 25th, "Lonely")

In perhaps the most striking portrayal of Tawny Blake to-date, she
brings Chinese Food and Movies to Simon's apartment, only to find him
half naked with his new girlfriend, Molly.  Tawny quickly exits the
scene, and finally shows some of the emotional pain she's suffered at
the hands of Skye Ashner.  Truly a lesson in character development by
Dante, who gets a round of applause from the Kingfish.

RUNNER-UP: Dale 'The Mirror' Stanwycz
(War of the Words, Feb. 4th, "Spider Dale")

Adding a whole new meaning to the term "toilet humour" was Dale's
hilarious dream, that winds up with him being advised to *push* in
order to make his webbing ... winding up with the one line of dialogue
I still can't help but laugh at every time I read it:

ELAINE STANWYCZ: Dale? Are you still asleep honey? Wake up it's l... 
what the...? DALE!! YOU ARE SHITTING ALL OVER THE BED! STOP PUSHING,
WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DREAMING OF? DALE!!!


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

AARON BENTLEY : Best Roleplay of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

WINNER: Guido the Great 
(War of the Words, February 25th)

This roleplay was really just magnificent, especially as it got into 
the second half.  It developed Guido's character more, as to him trying
to gain the respect of his brother, and opened us up more to his
heritage.  It's honestly just beautiful how Guido is fighting for his
brother to forget what he has done.  The family touch is just so nice.

RUNNER-UP: Tawny Blake 
(War of the Words, February 25th)

Tawny's roleplays are always top-notch, but this one did a lot for me,
because it showed a somewhat different side of Tawny.  For one week, 
she was vulnerable, and she was a girl.  She wasn't worried about
beating some guy up as much as she was about her feelings, and I liked
that.  I really had a deep feeling of sympathy for Tawny, by the end,
and it was hard to choose between this one and Guido's.
 

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JOHN BERGIN : Best Roleplay of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

WINNER: Jack Ketch
(War of the Words, Feb. 25th)

-A wierd choice, I know... but this roleplay, for some reason, just
stuck with me this month. Can't explain it, but the eerieness and
mystery of Ketch just really shined for me this week. It's amazing how
a man that doesn't speak can have so much to say. Amen, Brother! AMEN! 

RUNNER-UP: ....shut up... this was hard enough picking one... I'll say
TAWNY and THE CAPITOL get runner up for just having great roleplays the
whole month.


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JP DECOSSE : Best Wrestler of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

In my opinion, the best Wrestler of a particular month is one who
delivers consistently on War of the Words, appearing in progressive
scenes during Total Dementia, participating in memorable matches, and
going that extra mile to make the DCWL a special place.  For me, there
was only one choice for the month of February 2003...

WINNER: Dale 'The Mirror' Stanwycz

Meeting all the above criteria and then some, Dale Stanwycz outdid
everyone to be crowned the league's MVP for the last month.  For me,
the turning point for Dale was his performance at the Winter Season
Awards Ceremony, single-handedly making the event a watchable occasion,
and unquestionably stealing the show.  In ongoing issues with The
Vindicator and Skye Ashner, along with his new friendship with Cousin
Cletus, Stanwycz proved himself as a franchise player, essential to the
success of the DCWL as a whole.

RUNNER-UP: The Vindicator

Continuing his reputation as one of the most controversial characters
in the history of the game itself, The Vindicator continues to deliver
entertaining roleplays on a regular basis, and bring his vain superhero
self to Dementia, getting under the skin of most of the roster with his
boasts and actions.  The two-faced flexibility of jumping to a
sympathetic babyface from a plotting heel during any given event makes
Vindy an invaluable asset to the DCWL, and in the month of February
2003, was exactly that to the fed.


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

AARON BENTLEY : Best Wrestler of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

WINNER: Guido the Great

Not only did Guido become the Grand Champion in the middle of last 
month (January), and continued to be the champion throughout this
month, Guido just became better, and began to excel above the other
wrestlers in the DCWL.  His roleplays became stronger, his character
became more and better developed, and he's become more and more
believable as a Champion.  Guido is a strong Champion, and whether he's
Champion for 6 more months or 6 more weeks, Guido will continue to be a
major player in the DCWL.

RUNNER-UP: Tawny Blake

This month, Tawny proved that even without the Grand Championship, she 
was one of the strongest wrestlers in the DCWL.  Her roleplays
continued to be some of the strongest in the DCWL, and we saw even more
sides to her character, sides that we didn't know existed in anyone. 
Tawny came to the end of the month in some sort of rut, but her
upcoming match against Skye Ashner at On Location will become the tale
of the tape as to whether she will remain a strong force or not.


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JOHN BERGIN : Best Wrestler of the Month

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

WINNER: Dale Stanwycz

-Dale has put forth that extra effort into everything this month it
seems. He hasn't missed a WOTW, he hasn't written a bad roleplay. He's
put stuff out for Dementia, and was the sole handler putting flare into
the awards show. Dale gets my vote this month. He's done an excellent
job, and I think he's the DCWL's number one face.

RUNNER-UP: Tawny Blake

-Losing the Grand Championship, and Skye Ashner has proven to be a good
thing for Tawny Blake, because after dropping the belt, she's
skyrocketed with entertaining skits and flashes, and she's never looked
back. If not for Dale's extra efforts, I'd have given her the #1 spot.
The whole novel form roleplays have been such a joy to read.

HONORABLE MENTION: Jack Ketch 

I just wanted to point out that Ketch was overall my favorite character
throughout the past month.


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

AARON BENTLEY : Closing Remarks

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

This proved to be a great month for the DCWL.  Roleplaying seems to be
getting stronger and stronger and every edition of Total Dementia is 
just, simply, better than the one before.  Several wrestlers have
stepped up to the plate to prove they're worth their weight in gold,
and many of those have proved just that.  Guido, Tawny, Skye, IDP,
Ketch, and JC Blake, in particular, have really stepped up to the task
of keeping things strong in the DCWL.

A new face I've become very interested in is the MYSTERY NEWCOMER!  
Each of this person's roleplays have been fantastic and have really 
been keeping me on the edge of my seat for their impending debut.

February also witnessed the birth of a new War of the Words.  In my 
humble opinion, the change in WOTW has been very nice.  Of course I
would think so, since it's my show, but it just seems to me that the
things that develop on WOTW nowadays are quite nice.  Also, the
Purebreed Divison has really beefed up.  The division has catapulted
into being more than just an entry-level title and the competition
there has gone to bat for that.

So far, March looks to be an even stronger month.  I hope to see a few
characters step it up a little more and to really make a huge impact.  
I'm talking about characters like Skye Ashner, JC Blake, Rex Creed, and
especially the newer, younger characters, like Mark Haley, Doomsday, 
Matt Cole ... and so on, and so on.  March should be very interesting
as April should be a Supercard month.  The DCWL looks to become
stronger than ever and from the looks of things, it may accomplish just
that.


~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JOHN BERGIN : Closing Remarks

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

This month was one of great excellence. I felt that guys like Ray,
Mike, Ryan, Dante', and Gerry all stepped up this month with some great
stuff. They have to be putting out my favorite stuff right now, and
raising the bar just a little higher than normal. The match writing and
angles were reflecting that as well. I can't wait to see what's in
store for the PPV. 

Guys that let me down this month were Guido, because since becoming a
face... something hasn't clicked right. He seems to be pretty stagnant
this month, but is starting to pick back up at the end of the month.
Maybe he should try giving Guido a new face gimmick? I dunno... I just
think he needs some work if he wants to stay in the main event. Then
there's the Outlaw... I was beginning to like the kid... really liking
the kid! But, alas... if he doesn't start participating, I fear he will
follow the same path as Chris Pike before him... same goes for
Doomsday, and Groond. 

IDP and the Vindicator, both guys are old IWL faces, which makes them a
bit hard for me to judge unbiased. But, I think IDP was very boring
until Colonel Alexandra showed up to spice things up, which made him a
million times more entertaining to read. I think IDP/Paul needs to keep
up with her and the General. That interaction is gold. And Vindy is
Vindy... there's not much to say... either you love him... or you hate
him... and I love him most of the time. The Vindicator is that face
that the marks of wrestling would love, and the smarks would love to
hate. (See: WWE's The Rock pre-heel turn.) 

Guys that I'd like to see stepping up more are JC Blake, whom I've been
impressed with lately, Rex Creed, who needs to start taking a new
direction with the character I think, and Cousin Cletus, whom I think
could be a big face in the DCWL. I think Cletus just needs to find
something that makes him a step above the rest of the faces, and ride
with it, right to a title win, or a big push. I'll have my eye on him. 
 

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

JP DECOSSE : Closing Remarks

~~~~~~~~~~ D ~~~~~ C ~~~~~ W ~~~~~ L ~~~~~~~~~~

It is no secret that the five big guns that have been in the DCWL from
nearly day one (Ketch, Creed, Tawny, Guido, Ashner) have continued
their dynamite activity in the DCWL, and all deserve designer fruit
baskets for their continued excellence.

That being said, I'd like to focus my attention on some of the newer
faces in the DCWL, and offer both praise and suggestions:

<>  The Vindicator has been producing some of the most entertaining
roleplays I've ever read, but unless Chuck is reading all of the
material that his main protagonists are producing, he'll never be as
effective as he could be.  It only takes about 20-30 minutes to read an
entire edition of War of the Words quickly, which isn't a major
sacrifice once a week, even for the busiest of people.

<>  Cousin Cletus would be immensely more entertaining if Josh were to
adopt a Southern accent in his writing of the character.  (ie, "Ah went
to my mah-muh's house th'other day, y'all!")  Although an articulate
hillbilly isn't unthinkable, it occasionaly has the tendancy to come
off a little flat.  I think this slight adjustment could turn an
already great character into a top contender for every accolade in the
DCWL.

<>  I believe that the criticism of Paul's portrayal of General
Pentagon has been a little harsh.  A flamboyant, uncontrolled Pentagon
would lack realism, and his dry persona becomes very entertaining when
paired with less disciplined characters like The Vindicator and Colonel
Alexandra.  It's this regular contrasting of personalities that is
crucial to IDP's success in the DCWL.

<>  The Capitol's concept pieces continue to be unique and intriguing,
and as expected, always great for debate and controversey.  Mike is the
master of the joint roleplay, and using that gift to occasionally give
the rub to less experienced players (ie, a watercooler confrontation,
without the need for a full-blown feud) would benefit the DCWL as a
whole.

<>  To those who may not be contributing on a regular basis, I'd like
to suggest not attempting to write an entire roleplay in one sitting. 
Write an introduction here, some strong dialogue there, and before you
know it, a roleplay is completed with only 5 or 10 minutes of time
sacrificed each day.  The long epic roleplays are often not the best
ones produced, so there is absolutely no need to strive for that kind
of output.

<>  On the whole, the use of kayfabe criticism (aka, "shooting") as
roleplay material is a very poor idea.  It can be a witty device if
used VERY subtlely and in FULL context of a roleplay, but using an
entire block of dialogue to trash another player's work is tasteless,
and detracts from your own work.  Special mention goes out to Tawny
Blake, Cousin Cletus, and Jack Kech for being the only regularly
contributing characters to completely abstain from this practice.

In conclusion, everyone in the DCWL is working wonderfully to create a
fun and dynamic ewrestling universe, and I think March is going to be
an even stronger month for characters to break out as major players,
challenging the old guard to "put up or shut up"!  The size of the
active DCWL roster continues to be a concern for me, and I would
encourage all to either recommend the fed to an friend, or consider
bringing a second character into the fold.  We've got a great game in
the DCWL, and together we can make sure it remains a fresh venture for
months and years to come!