Welcome back to Ringside issue 8 where the hard slams and tough breaks occur outside the square circle. In the second arc of Ringside major changes have occurred as Davis was brought down to help train younger talent. Dan is working as an enforcer for a crime organization. Reynolds is receiving his first break in the wrestling business. Promoter Hank is trying to save and revive his old promotion that is struggling. With all this going on issue 8 is considered to be the calm before the storm as all hell is about to break loose in these 4 peoples lives in the next several issues. Welcome to the reality of the wrestling business.
The Good:
The comic does an excellent job of using a flashback to establish the fact that wrestlers in the beginning of their careers sometimes get screwed. This was the case with Dan and Davis and their promoter, Hank, as he could not pay them a guarantee for a show they were doing. As a result, it puts wrestlers, like Dan, in a tough position as they need money to live but also can’t let down their fans. In Dan’s case he ultimately chose to work without getting his guarantee, as not to disappoint the fans. This situation happens with wrestlers primarily on the independent scene, as it is unpredictable how a show’s crowd can be. The comic continues to capture how the wrestling industry affects people’s morals, as is the case with Dan and Reynolds. Dan’s morals have changed due to the wrestling industry and life events, as he is now working as an enforcer for a crime organization. In particular, somebody is talking to Dan, which results in that person having their arm broken by management. Dan normally would stop and prevent it, but due to his obligation to paying off Teddy’s debt and how the wrestling industry has used him he does nothing. What Dan has experienced is not a unique circumstance with wrestlers as the industry is designed to use people and discard them after they have served a purpose, which is what happened with Dan. On the flipside, Reynolds morals are being tested as he is considering being part of a stable as an Acolyte as an opportunity. Yet his tag team partner Sisman disagrees and wants him to follow instructions given to him. Due to this Reynolds is conflicted, as he wants to put his best foot forward but is being told something and has to figure out what to do. This problem is not unique to him as many young wrestlers in small promotions and big promotions struggle with how to break out as a wrestler while still respecting the company and the direction they want to go in. Both Dan and Reynolds face moral challenges about who they are and what they stand for as people and wrestlers.
The Bad:
For far too long the comic has been circling around several issues. The main one being what is Teddy doing talking to Edgardo and what he is planning. Since issue 6 Teddy has slowly hinted at doing something, but has given no clues since to what that might be. This is frustrating to readers and feels as if it is being with held in order to be a draw for the comic. The second element that the comic has circled around is Hank being interested in Dan. He has actively attempted to track him
down, yet Dan is one accident away from permanently damaging himself. Knowing this information as a reader, this element to the story appears to be a dead end and a waste of pages.
The Verdict:
Ringside is the most accurate comic to describe how the professional industry works. Issue 8 is no exception to that statement despite it not living up to previous issues. The issue did address a crucial issue that occurs with younger wrestlers on the independent scene, as they are often not paid properly. But for the majority of the issue the comic did not add much to the current story, rather it began to set up for the second arc to come to an end. While setting up and moving the story along is important, these issues in all comics tend to be boring and for the most part do not add much to the overall comic. Ringside, issue 8, was semi-disappointing as nothing major happened to any of the characters beside them having internal conflicts with their morals.
