The metal bars are only for transport. The grille fabric getting stuck to the panels during transport is common. Your speakers should be fine as long as you didn't pull the foil strips from the mylar when "pinching" the grille fabric. In a dark room, shine a low power light over the panel to inspect whether the foil has come disbonded. A little disbonding in a few places is normal. What you should be concerned with is inch+ lengths of disbonded foil.
As for the speaker sounding louder from the rear, my guess is that's due to your ears also picking up sound reflected off the wall. Place the speaker dead center in the room and the loudness should be approximately equal.
As for the speaker sounding louder from the rear, my guess is that's due to your ears also picking up sound reflected off the wall. Place the speaker dead center in the room and the loudness should be approximately equal.