Thursday
Apr212011
Guilty Pleasures
This week, I discuss one of the things I'm embarrassed to love: Wrestling! I try to figure out what it is about professional wrestling that gives me so much shameful joy. Let me know what you think below, or share some of your own guilty pleasures with me at jeffcannata@gmail.com
Thursday, April 21, 2011 at 01:52PM
Reader Comments (18)
Your enthusiasm is infectious.
This is one of the best reviews of Wrestlemania I have ever heard. Great job Jeff
Very great take on WM27 and wrestling in general. I think WM27 would've ended quicker if HHH and Undertaker didn't stay on the floor for most of the match. Tombstone on chair was best part of the match but everything else was underwhelming.
Looking forward to more blog and vlog posts!
Great job, Jeff. I really loved the WWF as a kid and you described many of the reasons why.
Its Friday night smackdown now. Professional Wrestling should not be a guilty pleasure because there are millions and millions (The Rock reference) of wrestling fans but I too end up feeling guilty for liking it also. Wrestling has its own nerdy way to it. There are two podcasts that are great for wrestling that I listen to. I would recommend to you Right After Wrestling and Art of Wrestling. Right After Wrestling is a radio show that discuses the good and bad things in all things wrestling. Depending on how long RAW goes they have a 45-30 minute show They have interviews and talk about the news as well. Art of Wrestling also does interviews.
That HHH vs Undertaker told such great story telling just in the match. When it iswrestlemania time Undertaker is a god almost. He can take 10 chair shots 4 Pedigrees and a Tombstone Piledriver and can still win at Wrestlemania. Don't forget the story telling after the match also. What occurred shows that these two wrestlers are getting older and win at wrestlemania means so much to them, especially the streak. And perhaps Taker is ready for retirement or can be beat in the next match at Wrestlemania.
Hey, wrestling is indeed great because as you mention there are so many aspects that one could find intriguing. My wrestling interest isn't what it use to be 10+ years ago ( I was getting the WO newsletter, trading-tapes, all ppvs) but I do often go on wrestling watch binges, usually around the Royal Rumble-Wrestlemania time.
For behind the scene aspects, WWE branded releases tend to be what you described in the True Story of WM dvd, just self promotion and revionist history. I do like the Rise and Fall of ECW dvd though. Probably the best WWE produced show is the Roundtable discussions on the Demand channel.
Depending on your interest level, there are some highly informative "shoot" interviews and my personal favorite Guest Booker series, which for example have Kevin Sullivan or Jim Cornette and they go through the though process of basically the whole storyline process if they were in charge during a specific time.
For Podcasts, I would suggest Dave Lagana's IWantWrestling one, he is a former WWE writer and gets old WWE writers or production people on the casts. Informative.
Sorry for the long post.
Man, they should have let you review WWE: Allstars on ROTR! haha.
Loved the blog. A lot of the things you described why I love pro wrestling and why it is one of my passions right up there with video games. So it hit home. It is good to find another person who loves pro wrestling as much as I do.
I don't have anything in particular about wrestling I would like to talk about. But if anybody wants to talk wrestling, I have a blog dedicated to it, thesilverdome.blogspot.com so you can leave a comment there or reach me on twitter @AJSilver22. Would love to talk with pro wrestling fans.
Thanks for the blog.
I have to agree, I am 36 and I have watched professional wrestling since I was a child. The amazing part of it is that I am pretty sure that most everyone watching knows that the matches are rigged and the wrestling itself, although very physical, is also very theatrical. If anything it still stands to be one of the best examples of disbelief suspended.
As for me I will continue to DVR Monday Night Raw and now WWE Tough Enough and watch it in the dead of night so i can avoid my wife’s disapproving glances and head shakes... ;)
The most fascinating class I took in college was a film studies course on hyper-violent movies, but the professor was a huge mark as well and half of the class focused on wrestling and comics. I'd been a fan for some time before the class, but it was interesting to study wrestling in a class setting and analyzing the storylines.
He compared wrestling and superheroes to the myths of ancient Greece and Rome. There were heroes and villains, quests and magical items, and the archetypal "hero's journey" as described by Joseph Campbell. The WWE plays around with those themes a bit, but they're all there, and that's what creates the expectations in certain matches, such as Trips and the Undertaker.
Those myths aren't much more than literature these days, but comic books and wrestling are carrying forward that tradition of good vs. evil, right vs. wrong, the common man vs. the supernatural.
Well, this is good timing! I've been an off and on fan of wrestling since I was a kid. I don't really watch WWE or any of the big shot stuff anymore though. However, here in Sacramento, we have an independent organization called SPW (Supreme Pro Wrestling). The characters here are astounding and I have seen more shocking and thrilling moments attending these events than I have anywhere on TV. The performers are incredibly dedicated to entertaining the crowd and putting on a show.
So, Jeff. Last Sunday, a crew from NBC came down to the 11th anniversary show of SPW and taped a pilot all day for an upcoming show called Slammed. This show will document what really goes on behind the scenes of independent professional wrestling organizations. I know it's not quite WWE, but I'm sure you would find it equally enthralling. We could use a little help with promotion actually. If you're interested, you can check out the YouTube account here and the Facebook fanpage here. :)
All the reasons you like wrestling are all points that I agree with, but I really wish you'd stop saying on TRS and other podcasts that it's a guilty pleasure and that you're embarrassed about it. Sure pro wrestling is one of those hobbies that is hard to explain to people why you like it, but I've learned to try to not convince those people unless I feel they're genuinely interested. Most of the time, people just want to bash wrestling without even trying it, only saying it sucks or comparing it to MMA which is a totally different profession. It's not your fault someone is closed-minded towards wrestling. If you enjoy watching wrestling, that's all that matters.
Also, thought the Taker-HHH match was pretty good. Not as good as HBK-Taker (especially their first match), but entertaining anyways. Hunter's matches tend to be slower-paced, but he tells such a good story in the ring. I'm rooting for TNA to flourish, but one of the things that frustrate me is that I feel their guy's can't create a story in the ring as well, which is weird because a lot of their top guys have WWE experience. Flash is nice, but I need substance.
"there's the sstupid story lines that kind of insult the intelligence." LOLOL!!
Just so you know: Cougar Town is on your side: http://bit.ly/lAdrxE
MOIRA Good is good, but better carries it.-best Cartier pens
Still a very good read though! And a must-read for everyone who’s interested in web design or design of any kind.-luxury Fred sunglasses
his show will document what really goes on behind the scenes of independent professional wrestling organizations....xlpharmacy
<p>And Cai Yangchong went up, and came into his own horses around, suddenly will be inserted in his left shoulder arrowugg boots sale out, on horseback, with bows and arrows in his back, a bayougg boots clearancenet on the rump, the unbearable pain directly rushed out.</p>