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If that's what you think wrestling is, I have so many amazing things to show you. We're gonna start with a puppet fight and end with a human peacock that throws his friends at people as a weapon.
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- Thread starter Ru1977
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Nah, I’ve tried it all. I’m just truly, viscerally, NOT a wrestling fan. If there was a hook to get me into wrestling, we’d have found it by now.
To be totally transparent, pro wrestling gives me a deep, personal “ick” of discomfort. I don’t like saying that because I don’t want to yuck anyone’s yum, but wrestling totally creeps me out and I just can’t.
Ru1977
The Irishman
For the record, I'll finally out myself as completely on the same page as Ace with wrestling.
joshsquash729
Born on the cob
And my axe!*
*I feel the same. I don't knock anyone who loves it, but it always struck me as odd how seriously some folks take it when it's so clearly scripted. Every little out-of-context clip I see just looks so corny. And I love me some corn- I was practically born on the cob, but I just can't get into it. You'd think the big, buff, scantily-clad sweaty guys would get me into it, but alas.
*I feel the same. I don't knock anyone who loves it, but it always struck me as odd how seriously some folks take it when it's so clearly scripted. Every little out-of-context clip I see just looks so corny. And I love me some corn- I was practically born on the cob, but I just can't get into it. You'd think the big, buff, scantily-clad sweaty guys would get me into it, but alas.
Ru1977
The Irishman
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Yeah, the wrestler guys unsettle me in the way other folks have told me that clowns unsettle them.
Also: I’m not into aggressive competition. That *really* makes me uncomfortable. Like I have zero interest in watching any non-scripted sports, either, but the manufactured, performative, incredibly aggressive competitiveness of pro wrestling truly squicks me out.
I don’t even want to compete and “win” in real life.
Also: I’m not into aggressive competition. That *really* makes me uncomfortable. Like I have zero interest in watching any non-scripted sports, either, but the manufactured, performative, incredibly aggressive competitiveness of pro wrestling truly squicks me out.
I don’t even want to compete and “win” in real life.
Ru1977
The Irishman
Heh, right. A fake version of something I'm not into is even worse.
Meanwhile, I love Mystery, Alaska.
Meanwhile, I love Mystery, Alaska.
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That's just a little bit of a weird take because people also take cinema REALLY seriously, and you may be surprised to find out that movies are actually almost 50% scripted.
This is just conversational, not because I'm trying to change your mind; but I think one of the reasons I like the soap opera that is pro wrestling is specifically because it is distinctly NOT competitive. There's the act, but you know straight up this guy or that guy not only got paid to lose, but he's actually super okay with it and losing was his idea. It puts an interesting spin on the idea of it, because it's so counter to the programming. Like, these are all (or mostly) very secure athletes that DON'T take things like winning and losing seriously. And that's why they can go out into the center of tens of thousands of people and pretend to be scared of an undead sorcerer who, for some reason, wrestles to solve his problems.
It's fucking hilarious.
But I absolutely get that it's not for everyone. I'll be the first to say that I dip in and out myself, and I probably wouldn't care about it at all if it weren't nostalgic for me.
Ru1977
The Irishman
Oh! And I'm still not over GLOW getting cancelled, heh.
joshsquash729
Born on the cob
Wait, what?! What next- you're gonna tell me not everything I read on the internet is factual?!
I suppose I should elaborate- I know that it's scripted, I just don't get who decides what or why they choose to go the sometimes bonkers routes that they do. It all feels a bit soap opera-y to me at times, which I do realize could very well be my totally uneducated view talking, or could be the thing that appeals to a lot of folks. I feel the same about any and all sports, though. But to be fair, I get worked up when some performer I like wins an award or a cool new trailer drops or something- we all have our vices that are weird to others. But again, I don't knock anyone who enjoys any of them just because it's not my cup of tea. It's great to have a community where you can express your love for something with like-minded people. Someone should start something like that for action figures.
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Ah but see the act is what gives me the creep-out. I have a full-blown, undeniable trauma response to macho stuff and competitiveness and aggressive masculine loudness, it literally triggers me and always has. It’s the act that is the trigger.
Super-weird for a martial artist and seeming “tough guy” to feel like that, but I just do and I can’t help it, unfortunately.
Ru1977
The Irishman
I think I get it. As annoying as spontaneous but fake posturing is, rehearsed posturing is even weirder.
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Rehearsed posturing is what I see from most men I encounter on a daily basis, on one level or another, and certainly when I was a kid/teen, so I guess I just recoil from it in general.
I have total respect for the athleticism and commitment of the performers, though. As a stage fighter and low-key stuntman when the project calls for it, I can absolutely see the hard physical work and pursuit of excellence there.
My parents wouldn't let me watch WWE as a kid. Not sure why. I can't complain. They probably saved me from a lifelong addiction and thousands of dollars in action figure purchases.
They were fine with the other mid-'90s Florida trends: NASCAR and Pokémon. My love affair with NASCAR was blessedly short. That one wouldn't have lasted, anyway. I couldn't have withstood the culture around the sport, no matter how much I liked the racing. I don't actively engage with Pokémon, but I still have real fondness for it.
They were fine with the other mid-'90s Florida trends: NASCAR and Pokémon. My love affair with NASCAR was blessedly short. That one wouldn't have lasted, anyway. I couldn't have withstood the culture around the sport, no matter how much I liked the racing. I don't actively engage with Pokémon, but I still have real fondness for it.
It is kind of unique honestly, with multiple hours of live television weekly, a range of serious to campy to goofy characters, and multiple storylines that are more easily able to evolve in real time than most other forms of entertainment. There is a lot of suspension of disbelief to accept wresting logic at times, but that also makes it fun. It is a true immersive universe if you want it to be - the announcers are playing characters, the authority figures are characters, the matches themselves are designed to take the viewer on a story, there is also a great use of social media and news at times. Stories can last for an episode or for months, some rivalries can go back years.
It is soap opera-y to be sure, in that it rarely is especially subtle and a lot can feel like filling time. Wrestling is hampered like any ongoing storytelling in that there are only so many stories and so many tropes that can be used, characters get stale, the acting varies in quality, etc. But I think the part I like about it is the improv/interplay amongst charismatic characters and the crowd that is kind of unique - with the characters/announcers/stories working to have the crowd boo the bad guy and cheer the good guy - but crowds may go against the flow of the story and cheer the bad guy and boo the good guy - and the interactive nature means that the story can then either go with that or fight against it.
But I get the critiques. I don't understand how anyone enjoys horror films with the maniacal killers as the stars for instance and finds watching people suffering, even if campy, as fun.