Saturday, April 5, 2014

Professional Wrestling

Well, for those who enjoy professional wresting and some who don't it's officially time once again for Wrestle Mania. Makes me feel old to actually remember when it all started 30 years ago with "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, Hulk Hogan and Mr. T. So now it's officially time for Wrestle Mania XXX.

Before I talk about the main event I want to discuss wrestling in general for a moment. Despite the growing popularity of the WWE and the die hard fans of TNA (Total Nonstop Action) wrestling, I still hear frequently moans and groans from others when pro wrestling is brought up in the room during a conversation. True fans will be all animated and excited, but there are many more who see it as being to violent or immature. Some think it's homosexual for sweaty grown men to wrestle around. I don't personally think it's any more homosexual than football where the quarterback reaches between another man's ass cheeks for the football. Hut, Hut!
I believe the desire and appeal of sports, in general, is this latent aggressiveness in our genetic code that is still there from the days of the hunters and gatherers. In those times athleticism meant you were a good hunter, the tallest, fastest, and smartest were the ones who were able to spread their genes on to new generations. It is also in our nature as humans to want to be entertained. We haven't really evolved much from the medieval times of knights and tournaments, before that there was the coliseum of Rome.
People like to be entertained and we like things to seem on a grand stage, larger than life.
I keep hearing the haters talk about how wrestling is "fake" or "not real".
It's a SHOW. It is for entertainment purposes only. The wrestlers are body builders, actors, and entertainers... and like all entertainers, they are selling an image, in this case, tickets, pay-per-views, t-shirts and memorabilia. There are writers, just like any t.v. show or sitcom would have that write out the scripted drama. Like a ballet, the wrestlers go out and put on a show of athleticism in order to excite and entertain the fans. YES, the winner of the match is scripted before hand, but I assure you that the talent actually DOES get hurt. Broken bones, torn muscles and tendons, strains, sprains, and even death has occurred within the ring during the show. These men are trained professionals and these wrestling moves ARE dangerous and should NEVER be tried from home.

On a side note, I'm supremely disappointed with TNA wrestling. They have let go much of the good talent and kept around a lot of jabronies. Good talent they let go... let's start with the man himself, Hulk Hogan. How about the "Icon" Sting? Matt Morgan, AJ Styles, Christian, Jay Lethal, Devon, Rob Van Dam, and Alex Shelley, among others.

On that note, I want to say that I spent a few years not really watching the WWE because I don't really care for Vince McMahon. I like his company and talented wrestlers, but I don't care for his in ring "persona". I DO believe that the WWE puts on a show like no other. WRESTLE MANIA IS A SHOW LIKE NO OTHER! Ten years ago I went to Wrestle Mania in Los Angeles at the Staples Center and watched John Cena win his first World Heavyweight Championship belt. This year he faces a sadistic man named Bray Wyatt. But the main event is with my favorite wrestler: BATISTA vs. Randy Orton vs. the winner of the match between Triple H and  Daniel Bryant, which will be held earlier in the show which is 4 hours in run time with an additional 2 hour pre-show to be highlighted by a 4 team, 8 man tag team elimination exhibition match.
Tonight is the official WWE Hall of Fame ceremony featuring the induction of the Pallbearer, Lita, Mr. T, el jeffe Razor Ramon, and the Ultimate Warrior.
I'm not a paid spokesperson at all. That would be sweet... but, I'm not. In lieu of that I would like to say that the WWE network is a pretty sweet deal at $9.99 a month with access to a whole library of classic matches as well as behind the scenes featurettes, and all the pay per view matches as well.
Well, to all my wrestling fans out there, I hope you like the show. Feel free to leave comments if you'd like to discuss your thoughts on the show, a particular wrestler you like, or you just want to shout out your fandom of pro wrestling. 

1 comment:

  1. Since the posting of this blog the legendary Ultimate Warrior died on April 8th just days after accepting a permanent place in the WWE Hall of Fame.

    ReplyDelete

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