Is Ringside Fest a thing of the past?

[wwetna2008]

I saw that WWE is holding a Fanatics Fest and was wondering if that canceled out Ringside?

[jt]

I was under the impression fanatics fest was more of a meet and greet kind of thing, I don't think they're going to stop doing ringside fest because ringside has continued to get exclusive figures

[cableV]

Fanatics Fest is a being put on by Fanatics, not WWE. It has athletes and celebrities from all sports, the WWE superstars are just a part of it.

[LA Times]

Ringside Fest should be a 3 day event.

Day 1-Mattel WWE

Day 2-Jazwares AEW

Day 3-Zombie Sailor Toys, Super 7, MWFP, etc

[Glorydaysofwrestling]

Yes I feel like it is. I went to ringside fest in (I believe) 2004 and 2005 and maybe a few other years. It was amazing. Jeremy was there and he was so cool. Shot the Chocolate Shark & fantasy booked lineups and just made it such a great overall experience.

[LK3]

What does Fanatics Fest have to do with action figures?

[Crossfit Jesus]

Fanatics Feat

[breal59]

I hope so. They had an embarrassing showing last year.

[kirk815]

It's more like Ringside reveals ever since Covid/2020.

I'm really surprised they haven't gone back to the old format yet (open to the public, Mattel/WWE superstars in person).

[AxelSmackdown]

what

doesn’t this thing happen every year, someone asking if rsfest is canceled because it’s not been announced yet or something else is going on

[hulksox]

Jul 21, 2024 9:50:17 GMT -5 kirk815 said:

It's more like Ringside reveals ever since Covid/2020.

I'm really surprised they haven't gone back to the old format yet (open to the public, Mattel/WWE superstars in person).

Agree 100% with this. Hasn’t Ringside Fest as we once knew it - autographs from WWE stars and a chance to get some exclusive figs - long been a thing of the past? Hasn’t it just been a pre-taped YouTube video the past few years?

[Fighter Hayabusa]

It kinda has been a thing of the past since covid. They haven’t had a real “fest” this decade. It’s been nothing but zoom calls with Bill and Steve and doesn’t appear that they’re ever gonna go back to an actual in person fan event.

[aggressiveperfector]

Jul 22, 2024 10:05:09 GMT -5 Fighter Hayabusa said:

It kinda has been a thing of the past since covid. They haven’t had a real “fest” this decade. It’s been nothing but zoom calls with Bill and Steve and doesn’t appear that they’re ever gonna go back to an actual in person fan event.

Sadly, Bill doesn't seem to necessarily enjoy doing things like that...I don't know that I blame him after seeing the behavior of some of the community towards him in the past.

[Fighter Hayabusa]

Jul 22, 2024 11:24:59 GMT -5 aggressiveperfector said:

Jul 22, 2024 10:05:09 GMT -5 Fighter Hayabusa said:

It kinda has been a thing of the past since covid. They haven’t had a real “fest” this decade. It’s been nothing but zoom calls with Bill and Steve and doesn’t appear that they’re ever gonna go back to an actual in person fan event.

Sadly, Bill doesn't seem to necessarily enjoy doing things like that...I don't know that I blame him after seeing the behavior of some of the community towards him in the past.

IDK. Bill appears to be a little introverted but I never got the impression he dislikes these type of events. Seems to enjoy Mania and SDCC and the other smaller cons he sometimes shows up at. I think he just doesn’t like the toxic fans on these boards and social media so he tends to avoid those types of fan interactions.

[stc13]

Jul 22, 2024 11:34:43 GMT -5 Fighter Hayabusa said:

Jul 22, 2024 11:24:59 GMT -5 aggressiveperfector said:

Sadly, Bill doesn't seem to necessarily enjoy doing things like that...I don't know that I blame him after seeing the behavior of some of the community towards him in the past.

IDK. Bill appears to be a little introverted but I never got the impression he dislikes these type of events. Seems to enjoy Mania and SDCC and the other smaller cons he sometimes shows up at. I think he just doesn’t like the toxic fans on these boards and social media so he tends to avoid those types of fan interactions.

In all fairness, for years Bill posted here and was fairly engaged.  But the tone shifted and some pretty negative comments were made.  Bill doesn't seem to be great in general at taking feedback, so I don't blame him if he doesn't want to deal with that in his free time.

He doesn't seem like he likes being on camera, but he and Steve seem to be VERY accessible and chatty with fans at events.

[HothHan]

I forgot Ringside Fest even a thing. I went in '08 and still have a couple of those Flair exclusives MOC.

[kgchampion]

Jul 22, 2024 11:24:59 GMT -5 aggressiveperfector said:

Jul 22, 2024 10:05:09 GMT -5 Fighter Hayabusa said:

It kinda has been a thing of the past since covid. They haven’t had a real “fest” this decade. It’s been nothing but zoom calls with Bill and Steve and doesn’t appear that they’re ever gonna go back to an actual in person fan event.

Sadly, Bill doesn't seem to necessarily enjoy doing things like that...I don't know that I blame him after seeing the behavior of some of the community towards him in the past.

I do think the board has been more negative than it was 10 years ago. I could be misremembering, though. But I remember the most negative thing being the cancelation of the Legends line, store distribution, and a lack of serious headscan for DDP. Then they let the Dudleys deal expire without flashbacks and it all changed.