Description: NDP All-Stars are a direct-order DVD/Blu-Ray/VOD brought to you by Masters Corp that highlights some of the top-ranking in the Neo Development Project! The first interview of the DVD/Blu-Ray/VOD set, focusing on the quiet, dedicated hockey fighter, Brett Neuer. With the gorgeous movie star Lightning Spangles conducting the interview, we catch Brett training at his hockey rink in Duluth, Minnesota! Order the set today for only $9.99!
Somewhere in Duluth, Minnesota, a hockey rink is empty. For the most part, anyway. Considering the summer, many are simply not in the mood to be reminded of ice, snow, and winter. Only those with more romantic dispositions or athletic ones are here during this season...and for one Brett Neuer, it's the latter. Cones set up on each side of the rink, to each side of the goals, the young hockey player can be found without his stick...no, right now, he's not focusing on stick skilles. Right now, he's focusing purely on speed.
Breaking down the ice with one goal line as his starting line, he sprints madly, skates etching across the ice as he passes the blue lines, then the far goal line, forced into a hard turn that he barely makes before he glides down the ice back the other way. While he's hardly the fasted skater in the world, he's also got some serious momentum...as suddenly a heavy crash target is pushed onto the ice, first into the center ice...then once Brett makes another pass, it's pushed into his path, to where he ducks his shoulder, and attempts to simply ram into it with all the speed he built up. In a flash, Brett is pivoting off the sides into the boards, and the crash target is...well, it looks like it was hit head on by a sedan.
The crew, meanwhile, finishes setting up.
Lightning Spangles, known outside the ring as Jezebel, stands by the edge of the rink, leaning on the lip of the wall. Clutching a microphone, the rest of the crew is filming past the actress, and towards the hockey star tearing up the ice. A groan and gasp comes from the crew as Brett explodes in the dummy. As Brett circles around, the camera shifts the focus away from the hockey fighter....
And then, the focus is back on Lightning Spangles.
The woman turns to the camera, smiling bright. "Why, howdy y'all! It's me, Lightning Spangles! The All-American Heroine! I'm the host for this video log of the more unusual contenders of the Neo Development Project! With Daniel Jack leading the rankings, it can be easy to forget about the other fighters in the league! Tonight we have a special guest, right here in Duluth!"
"Brett Neuer, hockey fighter of the Neo Development Project!"
She begins Brett's introduction, as one of the hands cues over the hockey player. Smiling bright, Lightning Spangles continues the interview. "Ranked 5th in the Neo Development Project, Brett is currently tied with Kyokugen Legend Yuri Sakazaki. Clocking in with seven fights, he is proving to be a real workhorse in the tournament. Brett, come on over here! Everyone want's to know;" Lightning Spangle readies to put the microphone towards the rink, letting Brett spin right on up to the edge of the rink.
"Why did you join up with the Neo Development Project, Brett?"
Breathing heavily after that hard sprint around the rink, finishing with that crash into the dummy, Brett finds himself waved down by the crew outside the rink. He had been told they'd be doing a segment on his place in the NDP and his training methods. He feels kind of iffy on the whole thing...but hey, he came in for exposure, so why shy away from the cameras now. Not like he hasn't been filmed for fights or games as is, right?
Slowly pushing himself along the boards closer to where 'Lightning Spangles' is waiting for him with her mic. "Um...hi," he says, a small duck of his head, far too mild-mannered for someone who just plowed into that dummy like he did. "Um...why I joined....well...it's...kinda the same reason why I picked up professional fighting to begin with. I wanted to spread the profile of Ice Hockey around the world. Considering that the sport's been shrinking for decades now and it feels like such a shame for it to be ignored more and more...well, I was kind of hoping to get eyes on it again and show it can be exciting, you know?"
Lightning Spangles keeps apace with the cool-headed young boy. She had done these interviews before; of course, they were at a much younger age. But with Brett nervous nature, Lightning Spangles just keeps a patient presence, encouraging Brett to come out of that shell.
"I can really see it, Brett."
Lightning Spangles continues, putting a hand on Brett's shoulder. "You are bringing a new popularity to the sport of Hockey, not seen since the International Sports Team came on the scene! The International Sports Team, as you remember, was a huge promotional boon for their respective sports. Now, I know you have had a one-man promotion for the sport, but my question is if you have gotten any professional promotional offers?"
"Has the NHL approached you for promotional deals to help you push the sport?"
It's fairly apparent that despite his self-appoitment as an advocate of the sport that Brett is still a fairly private person, not used to the glare of the camera being solely upon him. Perhaps this explains why he never gave an official statement or interview after....that incident. "I...remember that a couple years back. That was one of my inspirations actually. I saw how they managed to raise their sports' profiles and thought it might have been the best way to do it.
When he's asked about his professional hockey aspirations, he scratches the back of his neck a little with that padded glove.
"I took a year or so off from fighting to return to the Greyhounds. My coach actually encouraged me to go into the draft and I know the team got a few feelers from NHL teams...but I ended up forgoing the draft to get back on the circuit. After that...well, the NHL didn't want any official advocacy since they didn't want people to assume it was all fighting, especially with a bad rash of concussions and spinal issues. Um...what that means I guess is that I won't be wearing the logo any time soon, but they'll be able to point to me to draw in new fans. I really don't mind it that way, to be honest."
Lightning Spangles just liked this kid.
He was just a soft-spoken, quiet good old kid. Down to earth. Lightning Spangles is rivited by every word the kid speaks, and she shows it. Smiling warmly, she holds the mic out. Nodding along, she finally responds verbally to Brett.
"Well, that is sure humble of you, sport!"
Lightning Spangles continues, as the director raises a cue to the older woman. "Now, I noticed that you had no further martial training than just being good at the sport of Hockey. I want to focus on that for a bit. What do you see as your unique niche in the fighting world by bringing Hockey to it? Do you believe hockey naturally lends to martial combat? And how do you adapt from the rink to the field? Do you notice the difference? And do you think your technique would be improved if it was purely on the ice?"
Lightning Spangles pauses, letting it sink it to Brett. Those were a lot of questions!
Brett rubs the back of his neck a little more, as if not sure how to to answer the question at first. "Well...not really? But...I'm coming at it at someone who knows the sport, ya know? I mean, most people will see Football as just guys in pads smashing each other and one guy winging the ball up in th' air, but there's more to it all than that...hockey's the same way I guess. You have your Gretzkys, yeah, but most all people know of hockey is slap shots and guys getting into fights...I...well, I kinda used that as a starting point."
Removing his gloves finally and tucking them underneath one arm, he reaches out across with his free arm and starts rubbing at the opposite side, rolling his neck. "From there...well...I just tried applying things I knew. How to pick up speed and put my weight into a hit to knock someone over, balance on my skates...and throwing in things I knew usually gets minutes in the box in a real game. Hooking, slashing, high checking, tripping. Plus....well, some cold energy that I'm still trying to get a full hold on." He looks back onto the ice. "If it was completely on the ice?...maybe. Skating on in-lines and skating on ice skates are close, but you're not going to get uneven ice the way you get uneven ground or street."
Still nervous.
Lightning Spangles nods along, her head bobbing eagerly. She was so into this interview. After all, if she did it well, and Brett as well, he would cash right on in to the bank! This was legit work, and helped her get exposure... as well as help get Brett exposure. "So you feel that you need the rink to really pull it over."
"You mentioned cold energy. "
Lightning Spangle seems to burst up with some fiery energy herself as she comes up with the next question. "Chi is a very personal thing, and changes from person to person. One of your techniques, Shark Crest was it? That uses your ice chi. How did you come to learn how to use ice chi? Why do you think your spiritual energy is ice? What techniques do you use to refine it? Have you tried learning any new chi powers, or expanding? I mean, do you think you could eventually make your own icy surface to skate on?"
Lightning Spangles give Brett a wink. She wants him to think he was doing great!
Brett shakes his head, looking back to the ice again. "I don't...well...less 'don't' and more 'can't. I can't expect to have ice everywhere, which is why I use my in-lines to begin with. So...I have to adapt. It's a nice thought though." He turns back to 'Lightning Spangles', nodding as she brings up Shark Crest. "Yeah, that's it. I....honestly, I couldn't tell you how I learned it exactly." He backs off a little onto the ice, about 2 yards away from the boards themselves. "When I first started, I saw everyone throwing around that lightshow stuff. I never thought about really doing it myself until...one fight, I was getting it really bad. I tried to cool off, thought about my time back home shooting pucks with my dad on the lake. I..." He pauses, coughing a little as he seems to choke up a little. "Sorry....just...." He coughs again and continues on, voice breaking a little. "I swung back like a slapshot, just trying to crack the guy in the shin, and...there was a little spark there. It might've been there the whole time, but I noticed it then, and then...just like shooting a puck. Keep at it, get the form...find that same feeling. Remember the cold, remember that connection and...."
He shakes his head a little more, trying to clear his head. "Ice...I love winter. I love snow and ice...it reminds me of here...reminds me of home." He clears his throat a little more. "I...um...I'm trying to get a handle on it you know. I...can get it focused through my stick when I hit people, but only if I really concentrate on it, and the thick of things...it's kinda hard. But I'm hoping I can feel it. One'a my recent fights, someone was...I dunno, drawing it out of me before. Everything was cooling off around me, even when I felt I was burning...so it's there. Just...need to focus. Feel....colder without...you know, becoming cold...I'm rambling, ain't I?"
Lightning Spangles just smiles, shaking her head.
"Don't worry about it, Sugar. This is all about you!" She drawls. Her smile fades a bit as she takes a deep breath. "It sounds like focus is a big part of your style. Now, this is a sensitive topic, but I believe this is a serious one. I understand that it is important to keep your personal life out of the ring, as well as the rink. But how were you personally affected, well...."
"By the attack on your family?"
Lightning Spangles keeps her focus hard on Brett, her nature kind. "First of all, how did you feel? Do you know who could have done such a thing? Do you believe it has interfered with your competitive fights?" Lightning Spangles keeps her presence positive. Optimistic. This was a sensitive topic.
And if Brett didn't want to answer, he didn't have to.
Brett sighs. Yeah, he knew this was coming, and while he was obvious having concerns even talking about his dad earlier, it wasn't something that was gonna be danced around forever. "I...." He draws back a little more, brushing his hair back with one hand as a sign of his frustration. Obvious, even if he intended to talk about it, getting the words out are a totally different story. "...I was crushed because...I know why it happened and why my parents. And....I know who. Or at least who set it up." He clams up after that, lips drawn in. Obviously, he doesn't want to explain past that for his own reasons.
"My parents....my dad got the worst of it. He was in serious condition up until just last week or so, but he's still gonna need physical therapy. I....really don't want to say much past that." The response is telling, but perhaps not as much as his posture. Nervous before, and despite his torn up tone, his hands are balled up tightly, arms tensed and knees locked. Obviously holding something back, but it isn't tears.
A sensitive topic, to be sure.
So sensitive, that Lightning Spangles has not pushed it any further. "Well, I am sorry for your loss." She states, very calmly. "And I will pray for your father have a quick and full recovery." She pats Brett on the shoulder, before drawing back. "I know it is an emotional question, and you are very brave for coming out in the open about it."
"How about we move to the future, then."
"Brett, you are almost a shoe-in right for the semi-finals. What are you plans for the semi-finals? Are their any opponents you are looking forward to fight? Any rivals? And what are your plans after the Neo Development Project?"
Brett takes in a deep breath, slowly relaxing finally after the rather....sensitive question. And judging by the slight tinge in his cheeks at the pat upon his shoulder, his normal demeanor is back and running. He really is a private boy, isn't he?
"...I...really don't know. I think I've faced everyone else who's in the top 8 so...I know what fighting them is like. I can't really say who I'd rather face since all of them really gave me a bad time." He looks across the ice, one way, then back. "I'm just going to try as hard as I can and see how far it gets me. And past that...I'm not sure really. Get real fight training, get involved with Saturday Night Fights more....we'll see."
And with that, Lightning Spangles tips her hat.
"Well, that is all the questions I have for you for now, Brett. Good luck with your training, and, hey!" She suddenly exclaims. "Maybe you give us a look at some of your signature moves! You certainly have the most unique style in the field right now."
"How about we see that Blackhawk Down move!"
The cameras turn to Brett, waiting for his closing response.
That's certainly an...interesting request, but if that's what they really want, no reason for Brett not to humor it. It's a simple request after all. Nodding, he reaches over to fetch his stick, resting on the other side of the boards. Raising the stick up above his head, he quickly takes it into a spin, blurring like helicopter blades before he tilts the stick downward, skating back so there's enough room away from the boards and the crew so no one's caught up in it as the stick keeps spinning like propellors, pointed straight at the camera.
Log created on 21:53:07 05/20/2012 by Jezebel, and last modified on 09:10:23 05/22/2012.