> Hey Scott,
>
> With Money in the Bank hype surrounding Temple's campus, I've been receiving the incessant stream of questions regarding why I still watch "that fake shit." Every wrestling fan has had to deal with this judgement their entire lives and I tried my best to explain once and for all to these critics. Fight the power!
>
> http://temple-news.com/arts/2013/07/13/corrigan-why-i-still-watch-pro-wrestling/
>
> John Corrigan
>
Jim Cornette famously said you should just mock something they love, such as their ugly children or spouse.
I usually say I agree with them and then ask their favorite show. After praising it a bit, I'll say "but wait, that's a fake show." It works most of the time.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed that man, good article. I usually say I watch it for "nostalgic reasons" but I've also explained to some that its like a drug I've been hooked on since I was young.
ReplyDeleteAlso made me wonder what the first match I ever saw was. I remember the Legion of Doom walking to the ring but nothing else
ReplyDeleteAnyone who watches reality TV has no business talking shit about any other show. And those shows have been dominating channels for the last decade so most people should STFU about what others enjoy.
ReplyDeleteRandom co-worker: "Man, that shit's fake"
ReplyDeleteMe: "Fall on the floor fifty times, then climb on your chair and jump off another ten. We can do this five nights out of the week for five to thirty-five years."
Or TV...or movies...or theater...
ReplyDeleteI used to be embarrassed about admitting to watching professional wrestling at times, even during the peak. If nothing else, I certainly didn't volunteer the information easily.
ReplyDeleteBut now? In the age of Honey Boo-Boo and [i]Wife Swap[/i]? I'd proudly walk into work wearing a WWE-produced tie and dare someone to talk shit about it. "Oh, wrestling's fake? Well, I guess it's not as real and legitimate as the fucking Bachelorette."
Conclusion - Everything's fake now. Pro wrestling's barely a drop in the ocean.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned above/below, everyone watches SUCH bullshit these days, that it makes the whole pro wrestling argument a damn sight easier.
Ironic considering we're way past its hayday.
Do they also ask you "Dude, how come you don't write paragraphs?"
ReplyDeleteYeah, every time I see another trash magazine covering the "real life drama" of a Real Housewives show or Teen Mom, I feel much better about wrestling. At least wrestling is upfront about its bullshit.
ReplyDelete"You're right. There's nothing redeemable about pro wrestling's policy of predetermined results and storylines. Hey, remember that Mayweather/Pacquiao match? Man, that was one of the best fights of all time!"
ReplyDeleteThat's the format for columnists. Everyone writes like normal, and then they space it out in editing. It's silly that you wouldn't read something because it's in sentences rather than paragraphs.
ReplyDelete(I went to Temple. Trust me, it'll sting those jerks more than most other places.)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Cornette. Everyone else has something fake in their life that they supposedly love. Make fun of it endlessly when you find their weakness.
ReplyDeletePeople hate everything they don't understand, which is usually just about everything there is.
ReplyDeleteMaybe. Or maybe they don't understand why grown adults watch something that has been told to them repeatedly and - by the company that produces it - is a product aimed at 10 year olds.
ReplyDeleteI still watch wrestling because shut up, that's why.
ReplyDeleteBecause it is "fake shit" is no more justification for not watching wrasslin than most other stuff on TV or in the movies.
ReplyDeleteMy favourite part is how we get shit for liking a "fake sport", and yet at one point one of the most popular shows going was The Hills, which was a FAKE REALITY SHOW.
ReplyDeleteA long time ago, a friend and I were at a bar and saw wrestling on the TV. He says "I don't get wrestling. I mean, it's just fake fighting." I said "what are movies?" and he all of a sudden got it. He eventually turned into a fan.
ReplyDeleteBecause wrestling is only WWE?
ReplyDeleteI think "aimed at families" and "aimed at 10 year olds" are somewhat different things. There is certainly some evidence from the movie business that there is an ample market for entertainment suitable for all ages.
ReplyDeleteAs far as anyone is concerned.
ReplyDeleteJohn Cena… aimed at families or 10 year olds? Besides, the company has specifically said, several times, that its audience are 10 year olds. Specifically.
ReplyDeleteIn 2013 basically everyone hates everything so we're all in good company
ReplyDelete...because the real world is faker than wrestling...
ReplyDeleteI've tried going with a ridiculously intellectual explanation and explaining that I'm interested in wrestling from a semiotic perspective as a study of symbols. Everything in wrestling is representational, from moves to personas. Everything possesses a value that is promoted by the company and is either accepted or rejected by the fans. Everyone knows it's not real, but everyone wants it to feel authentic. We want to see a drop kick executed and sold as though the imaginary value correlates to the presumed "actual" value of the damage. Matches like Flair/Steamboat transcend to the level of artistic appreciation because the story told in the rings follows a compelling sequence in which each action flows as a logical consequence of the previous action. Critical fans ("smarks") appreciate performers like Daniel Bryan and CM Punk because they create this sense of authenticity both in their personas and ringwork. Watching this process and studying the angles which make these connections in "gettin over" fascinates me.
ReplyDeleteUsually this explanation gets a response of (blank stare) "But you know it's fake, right?"
Who cares about other people?
ReplyDeleteWell…
ReplyDeleteWith the question being "how do I explain to others why I love pro-wrestling" maybe you can see where other people come into play…
And, clearly you do, or you wouldn't be here communicating with, you know, other people.
Where? I went through the last few annual shareholder's reports, and I don't see that.
ReplyDeleteI can't be arsed to find the link, but most famously (I think anyway) HHH said it about a year ago. Anyone with better Google Fu?
ReplyDeleteI mean, if you want to add all these addendum to the question.
ReplyDeleteHere's how it'd go.
"Hey, how do you watch that wrestling shit, it's so fake and it treats you like a child?"
"Well, I know it's fake, but so is porn. And not all wrestling treats you like kids, some of it is actually pretty mature."
Bam.
And also, you really shouldn't give a shit about other people's opinions of what you like. As long as it's not rape or murder, people have no right to condemn you.
Again, the "other people's opinion" bit doesn't hold water here.
ReplyDeleteNah, I don't care that its fake, so was Die Hard, the Godfather and the nightly news. I do care that it treats me like an idiot, makes constant excuses for a poor product and then tells me I'm not their target audience. And I gotta wonder about a person, over the age of 25, who subjects themselves to that shit.
You're taking this way too seriously.
ReplyDeleteI think the wrestling sucks now argument is bullshit and that the attitude era was way more kid-orientated than the current era.
If anybody asks you why you love wrestling, or rather, why you love WWE, point them to MiTB 2011, to Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus, to the Shield vs...anybody really.
If some person is going to think less of you for your taste in entertainment, they are a stupid person whose opinions should be ignored. Liking reality TV does not make you a bad person. Liking Kesha does not make you a bad person. Concerning yourself with the judgement of other people is a surefire way to unhappiness.
Of course it doesn't make you a bad person.
ReplyDeleteBut it might show that you have poor taste, are culturally slumming, a masochist, a sadist (if you're watching to see someone humiliated, you're a sadist) might be responsible for lowering the standards of humanity (the Kardashians didn't get popular in a vacuum) and in the case of Honey Boo Boo, maybe a retard.
But no, not a bad person.