Why the heck do people still watch pro wrestling?

(Aside to Mod: I put this post here because it encompasses both entertainment and sports.)

I keep seeing this pro-wrestling crap (such as RAW) on the Asahi Network and numerous other cable stations. I thought the stuff was totally hokey even in junior high (unlike some of my friends, much to their present embarassment). Aside from the obvious fakeness of it, they run exactly the same “plots” every time: fighter A totally kicks ass on fighter B for a while, fighter B looks doomed, fighter A starts to get him in a hold, and THEN…OH MY GOSH…HE BROKE OUT OF IT…HE’S COMING BACK…NOW HE’S GOT THE OTHER GUY ON THE RUN. Yawn. Every. Single. Time.

But that’s not the worst of it. Now we’ve got the UFC and Pride. We KNOW what real no-holds-barred fighting looks like. We can see the astonishing skill and athleticism of actual MMA fighers - so how can ANYONE be lame enough to watch this crap? What’s the appeal? I can’t even believe the pro-so-called-wrestlers are thick-skinned enough to even get into the ring, knowing there’re people doing true full-contact striking/wrestling out there.

Then again, people back home watch monster-truck rallies and Nascar - and people in Taiwan listen to Karaoke radio. I suppose nothing should surprise me.

Hey man, you talk about pro-wrestling like you can tell what’s gonna happen! So the fights end up being similar. So what? At least they’re not rigged! :wink:

[quote=“Vay”](Aside to Mod: I put this post here because it encompasses both entertainment and sports.)

I keep seeing this pro-wrestling crap (such as RAW) on the Asahi Network and numerous other cable stations. I thought the stuff was totally hokey even in junior high (unlike some of my friends, much to their present embarassment). Aside from the obvious fakeness of it, they run exactly the same “plots” every time: fighter A totally kicks ass on fighter B for a while, fighter B looks doomed, fighter A starts to get him in a hold, and THEN…OH MY GOSH…HE BROKE OUT OF IT…HE’S COMING BACK…NOW HE’S GOT THE OTHER GUY ON THE RUN. Yawn. Every. Single. Time.

But that’s not the worst of it. Now we’ve got the UFC and Pride. We KNOW what real no-holds-barred fighting looks like. We can see the astonishing skill and athleticism of actual MMA fighers - so how can ANYONE be lame enough to watch this crap? What’s the appeal? I can’t even believe the pro-so-called-wrestlers are thick-skinned enough to even get into the ring, knowing there’re people doing true full-contact striking/wrestling out there.

Then again, people back home watch monster-truck rallies and Nascar - and people in Taiwan listen to Karaoke radio. I suppose nothing should surprise me.[/quote]

It’s hilarious. It’s mostly improv so it’s always something slightly different. Plus I think it’s amazing to watch these guys fly around the ring at 250lbs. Massive dudes jumping off the ropes for 20 feet is pretty cool. There is skill in not getting hurt. haha.

MMA is entertaining in a gladiatorial way. Love watching that as well. Wait till it hits the mainstream on prime time TV in the West. Then you’ll know we’ve gone completely mad when the little ones (kids) can watch guys kill each other in the ring. One day…it’ll happen.

I love pro rasslin! I started watching it on TV when I was a kid, and saw many live events, usually from the front rows. Chief Jay Strongbow, Andre the Giant, the Wild Samoans, Jimmy Superfly Snuka…and tons more.

I think I have a pretty good grasp of what it is and what it isn’t and I can understand why some people don’t like it, or why some despise it so much.

The results are fixed. But most people don’t know who will win and that in itself is enough for them to stay involved. Some know more about the backrooms and know who has signed a contract recently and for how much and they can see a guy moving to another company will lose the championship on a certain date because, well, he can’t take the belt with him, right? :slight_smile:

That the results are fixed doesn’t bother me. The NBA can be fixed for all I know, yet good games, even if they were fixed, also wouldn’t bother me. I want to see a good show. End of story.

It is fake. Well the open handed chest slaps are not fake, the chair shots to the head aren’t fake, and even a guy “protecting” the guy on mat when he jumps off the top rope and crashes into him…same thing.

There is a lot of give and take in a match, the boring back and forth, and fans will call the wrestlers on it, “Nice dance ladies!” and that too is part of the show. getting the people involved. I think it is great when people actually yell at their TVs watching a wrestling match. bwahahaha

I like the interviews. Not all of them, but some guys are naturals. They know how to pump up the crowd, make they cheer or jeer. The Rock was one of them. Cactus Jack (Mick Foley) was probaly the best spontaneous talker in the business, and god he was innovative and funny, “You scared Sting? Huh? You feel that lump in your throat Sting? Huh? Do ya? It’s your LIVER!” :bravo:

Too get into it, one must watch it with a real fan. There are stories behind every rassler…lots of history.

Watch some old ECW tapes and the whole “Fakeness” will slide away. Those guys were animals, tables chairs barbed wire, thumbtacks, flaming tables…jesus…it was fun.

And the best part?

Aside from some stitches, no one realy got hurt. :smiley:

jdstepsintothesquaredcircle

Wrestling is like ballet, except not faggy. (Sorry, fags.)

I wish somebody would write a Pro Wrestling opera. They could versify and musicalize all those little “I’m gonna kick yo ass” speeches they do. And the finale would come when some fat baritone picks up a folding chair and holds it above his head.

[quote=“Screaming Jesus”]Wrestling is like ballet, except not faggy. (Sorry, fags.)

I wish somebody would write a Pro Wrestling opera. They could versify and musicalize all those little “I’m gonna kick yo ass” speeches they do. And the finale would come when some fat baritone picks up a folding chair and holds it above his head.[/quote]

The Big Show?

Ok, thanks guys. What you’ve said makes the phenomenon a little more understandable to me.

I guess having trained MMA and loving to watch it so much, I’m sort of a “purist”. Then again, there’s certainly a lot less of the theatrical involved in it (Tito, Genki Sudo and Sakuraba being notable exceptions) than there is in PW, and I can see where some would appreciate that aspect. Those guys are sort of like comic book characters.

Erm…you were being sarcastic, right?

Remember how this guy met his demise?

Watch the excellent documentary “Behind The Mat”. Plenty of people got hurt.

Owen Hart was killed FALLING 90 feet from the rafters, not in a match.

You have a good point though; there are injuries that do occur in the ring. And I think that that possiblity, the possibly morbid, is also a draw for the fans.

AFAIK, no wrestler has died IN the ring (in a match).

This is a cool page with pics and descriptions of dead wrestlers.
Lots of heart attacks.

It IS comic-book-y.

Philosophically, Pro Wrestling is a natural consequence of treating sports as entertainment. (Sports could also be considered news, or even–gasp!–related to health.)

It no longer matters whether the contest is “honest” (though I would say it’s only a lie if they expect you to really believe it, which hasn’t been true for decades), what matters is the spectacle, and the investment in various characters. It’s like a Rocky movie, where there are heroes, villains (who change sides now and then), and a clear story arc.