When Aaron Epic’s opponent didn’t show up, he began searching for someone to wrestle in the crowd. “Are all the worthless weaklings in this town a bunch of fairies and females?!” — that kind of trash talk.
The fans are delighted when a hometown wrestler — Bobby Beverly — accepts Epic’s challenge, proving that there are still Real Men located in this geographic region.
The humiliated men in the crowd are hoping to see Beverly dominate and punish this mouthy bastard and send him back to his home state with his tail between his legs.
The Hometown Hero gimmick always works in pro wrestling, because the Baby Face is from “Here” so he is one of us. We can easily relate to him, and the key to any pro wrestling match is to get the fans to fall in love with the Face.
Aaron Epic is an invader from “Away.” He has disrespected our town and the people living in it. Therefore it is easy to hate him and want him to fail.
But first, the Hometown Hero script requires the Hero to suffer, which Bobby does beautifully.
Aaron Epic feeds the crowd’s hatred by sneering at them and telling them to shut up while he absolutely brutalizes their cute Hero.
Unless Bobby fights back soon, Epic is going to squash him. And Bobby’s fate affects the pride and masculinity of all the men in the town. If Bobby gets his ass kicked, it proves that the Heel was justified in saying that there are only females and fairies in this town!
So the fans are on the edge of their seats, clearly understanding that they’ll be emasculated and degraded if their Hometown Boy can’t win.
OK, normally the Hometown Hero fights back by now, but Bobby Beverly is looking like a jobber in a one-sided Beat Down, allowing Epic to punish him at will.
Bobby seems to be growing weaker and weaker, which makes it less likely he will ever fight back, put Epic in his place, and teach the bastard a lesson.
By the way, this Midwest Wrestling match is available on YouTube.
Normally the Hometown Hero rallies at the end of the match, thanks to the energizing cheers of his friends in the audience. However, the script is flipped in this match. Aaron Epic shatters Bobby’s manhood, then decks him with a ruthless Hay-maker to the jaw, then lays him out for the Pinfall.
The Hometown Hero has lost for once! The fans don’t get the satisfaction of seeing this out-of-town Bastard, this invader, getting his comeuppance. The men from the town are left impotent and castrated, their manhood questioned, their honor inadequately defended.
But the bastard cheated after all to gain the victory, and Bobby would’ve beaten him in a fair fight. So the collective love for the Hometown Hero is not diminished even if he loses.
