Does Being a Wrestling Fan Make You Less Judgmental?

[Harthan]

Our modern world is filled with questionable forms of entertainment, in terms of quality. Twilight, NASCAR, and all varieties of entertainment that are generally considered somewhat embarrassing for those that enjoy them. Depending on perspective, one might put professional wrestling in that very category. It's no longer a cool form of entertainment, if it ever was. Those who aren't fans seem to love to mock it with the usual lines. "Oh, it's so fake." "I guess you like naked dudes?" "LOL, they aren't really hurt, you know." And so on, and so forth. I think almost all of us have experienced mockery in some form for watching professional wrestling. What I'm wondering about is whether this has made you less judgmental of people who are fans of forms of entertainment you think are silly. It's an interesting question, I think, and the answer might depend on how you feel about wrestling personally. Do you see it as a guilty pleasure? It is embarrassing entertainment that you inexplicably love? Or do you think there's something deeper to it, something that so few people can see? Do you defend it as a higher form of entertainment that people just don't understand?

Until recently, I've been in the latter camp, and have looked down upon people who like things like Twilight or NASCAR or what have you. But it struck me recently that they might be able to make the same arguments for their entertainment that I can for wrestling. I defend wrestling as a hidden and underappreciated art form. Anathema though it is to my own mindset, someone could make that argument for Twilight. Maybe I am just deluding myself, and I'm just propping up wrestling to justify my love for it. Maybe it's as silly as Twilight, at the end of the day. I haven't answered that question yet. But it's certainly changed my perspective, and I've become less judgmental of all sorts of entertainment. It's not unilateral. If you're just a slavering Twilight fan without any good justification, I'll probably still look down on you. But if you made a decent argument for it - and I've heard a few - it tends to change my perspective on the issue.

So, what do you think? Should wrestling fans be less judgmental of other forms of entertainment, in a "those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" sort of way - and are you? Or is wrestling unfairly criticized, and is it in fact nothing to be ashamed of? Somewhere in between? Does it even matter? What's your perspective?

 

[Davi323]

No, we shouldn't automatically be less judgmental. All we have had to do is defend against against an ignorant stigma. Twilight will always suck. Just because you like something that others mock, doesn't mean you can't acknowledge something else as being total garbage without any redeeming value whatsoever.

You can usually shut most wrestling critics up by agreeing with them that it's fake, insofar as it's scripted...just like most TV shows, point out that injuries do occur, despite it's scripted nature, just like people get injured on movie sets, etc. You can usually defeat most arguments by logically pointing out why their misconceptions about wrestling are wrong. Some things though, there simply is no logical defense.

 

[ezuvgu]

Twilight is basically softcore porn for women. Its a watered down version of the hardcore stuff that is sold in the "Romance" section of your local bookstore. The only redeeming value it has for men is that it can help you better understand what women fantasize about.

Basically, the value of every form of entertainment is subjective and thus is different for every person. Just look at the relative levels of interest in the sports called "football" in the USA and UK in both of those countries. Most Americans and most Brits are fans of their local brand of football, but aren't interested in the other's brand.

NASCAR may be driving a car around in circles at a high speed for hours, but drag racing is driving a car at 300 miles an hour for a quarter-mile at a time. Fans at drag races have to block out their ears during the races because of how loud the cars are and they spend most of their time waiting around for them to set up the next race, yet many people actually spend their money to go to the drag races.

Here's an easy way to defend pro wrestling. If you took away the theatrics, the huge crowds and added judges to score the matches based on their quality, pro wrestling would actually have as good a claim to be an Olympic sport as figure skating and gymnastics. I think the wrestling industry is making a big mistake by not claiming to be a "sport" just because match outcomes are pre-determined. If gymnastics, figure skating, and even cheerleading are sports, so is pro wrestling. If the standard of a "sport" is that it has to be competition with an objective way of determining a winner (basically a standard that baseball, football, golf, tennis, chess etc. can meet, but gymnastics, figure skating etc. cannot), then the Olympics needs to remove a bunch of non-sport events.

Most of the people who hate wrestling and actually think that wrestling fans aren't aware that it is "fake" are probably fans of "sports" like gymnastics and figure skating or of "fake" entertainment such as scripted television programs and movies. I would imagine that this would be less of a problem if wrestling were in a boom period, which is why it is unfortunate that WWE blew so badly their most recent chance to create a boom period in the middle of last decade. NASCAR fans regularly see other NASCAR fans wearing a NASCAR driver shirt and they regularly see NASCAR stickers on cars.

 

[Calderownz]

I think it just depends on the person. It always does, really. Truthfully, I'll tell anyone that I enjoy wrestling and I'll tell them what I enjoy about it if they seem to care. Regardless, I wouldn't clasify it as a guilty pleasure as I am that way about anything I enjoy.

Entertainment of any kind is supposed to bring about an emotion. If whatever emotion it is meant to bring about is brought about, then it's successfully entertaining.

For example, that Ke$ha song "Tik Tok" (I believe it is called) is a song that I enjoy. I'm not spending a dime on purchasing it, but I enjoy it every time it's on. The song makes me want to bang some ****ty ****e I meet at a club. The song is meant to at least give off that vibe. So, for me, the song is successful in it's attempt.

It's not great music, but it has a great effect on me.

So, for me, personally, I've always judged people interests the way I judge the things I'm into. I don't understand the recent vampire crazes that everyone seems to be into. Or, I don't comply with it, at the very least. But, regardless, it doesn't matter. People just like the fantasy of it. The immortality. What have you. So, I don't really harshly judge them. I'll mock someone about it, I suppose, but I'm not sitting there trying ot tell them they shouldn't like it. Or that it's bullshit.

They know that.

They don't care.

Wrestling didn't make me this way. But, perhaps I realized it because I love wrestling. So, in that sense, it brought it to the forefront in my personal experience.

Still, if a wrestling fan is a judgmental prick, then he'll continue to be a judgmental prick.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I want to hump this question it is so awesome.

Anytime I am critical of someone's taste in entertainment I reflect back on the enjoyment I get from professional wrestling. I don't want people to judge me because I enjoy something they find distasteful and I shouldn't judge anyone else. Their enjoyment of certain things doesn't necessarily define who they are as a person and professional wrestling does not define me.

I may still criticize that other form of entertainment and gently tease the people that enjoy it, but there are far bigger things in life that define a purpose.

 

[Paralyzer Z]

I once ventured onto youtube and since I was in the mood to look up some Dragonball Z, I did so. In the margin lied a video titled "Top 10 TV shows of the 90s". I was curious to take a peek at the show that were popular or considered superior to those people who's existence preceded my birth. I saw many comments bashing today's television programs (as expected no many correct in terms of grammar), and someone shone light on me when the posted an opposing comment. It read "People just dislike anything that they didn't grow up watching, I bet the 80s generation bashed the 90s shows just as you guys do the 2000s programs".

I think that when people are in the early stages of life like Childhood or adolescence, they grow an emotional connection to things they enjoy, it will most likely last a lifetime. Now granted things like toys, and small children programs are eventually grown out of, other things are not. Wrestling seems to always be one of these things, if you are not a fan when you are a child, chances are you won't be ever a fan. Now this doesn't happen all the time but the violence and stories that are played out by WWE, and other companies entice not only adults but kids as well. Regardless of what the content rating (PG, G, TV-14) is kids like are interested in the product. I started watching as an 8 year-old in 2005 when guys were bleeding and women were doing sexy things all the time, I did not care I was emotionally invested in the product. Anyway as the fans grow older, most likely they will remain fans, their kids will be fans due to early exposure, naturally we are less judgmental because we have the memories of cherishing it as a child. Again this is not always the case but I believe it is most of the time.

 

[Che Delilas]

It makes me more judgmental when only looking at wrestling. When I see good wrestlers I want the high standards they give themselves to be emulated by everyone else, and when I don't see it I think "get these guys out, already!"

In terms of looking at how others view their entertainment, my opinion hasn't changed. I'll still always think soccer isn't a man's sport and that NASCAR is just a bunch of driving around in circles and that nothing but the final few laps is worth watching anyway.

 

[Ijapa]

"Twilight will always suck."

I think Professional Wrestling sucks.

When I was a little guy, a few years old, I loved Hulk Hogan. I was, I think, in 7th grade in 2002 when I heard from a classmate that Hulk Hogan was wrestling the Rock. I had stopped watching a long time ago, I missed the boat on being a wrestling fan during the Attitude Era when it was a cool thing. Anyway, I started to tune in because I wanted to see what Hulk Hogan was up to. I watched for a year or two, but lost interest after that. I totally appreciate the athleticism of the performers and some of them are clever and fun to listen to; The Rock obviously comes to mind. Alas, boring life that I lead, I would still check out Wrestlezone news from time-to-time. Eventually this slowed down too.

Then Punk did his promo and I've been vaguely more interested in following what's going on. I still didn't watch an actual Raw.

UNTIL, was it last Monday? Jericho's return. I was curious to see what'd he do, and I was curious to see this Kane/Cena thing I'd heard about.

God. God, did it suck so bad.

It's so, so cheesy. The acting is so horrible it's ... well, I guess it's just horrible. Kane pops out from under the ring? It's Hell under the ring?

Wrestling gets a bad rap because it tries to appeal to the lowest common denominator of person (plus children). The characters never really progress. People forget other people beat them near to death a few months before they became best buddy smiling tag team champs. There's no internal consistency.

I look at someone like Mick Foley and I think that he was literally too smart for Pro-Wrestling. The storylines he involved himself in and the way he spoke, he was a completely different animal than a lot of people.

If Pro-Wrestling wants to be taken seriously it has to take itself seriously, I mean that's really it. You can't expect to have Hornswoggle live under the ring in Kane's Hell while Kevin Nash sneaks around sending texts messages to himself and Zack Ryder acts like an idiot in the background.

I mean, even just doing the goofy stuff, but getting people WHO CAN ACTUALLY ACT, would improve it so much. Zack Ryder cannot act. John Lauranitus cannot act. Probably, I assume, the vast majority of the roster cannot act.

Characters need to actually grow and change in ways that are more than superficial "I'M NOW ANGRY AND FOCUSED BUT ONLY AT MEAN GUYS!" and "I'M NOW LESS ANGRY AND FOCUSED AND MORE JOVIAL" and "I'M ANGRY AND FOCUSED BUT ONLY AT GOOD GUYS!"

I'm looking at you, Big Show. And also probably every single wrestler on the roster. One month they're big selfish pricks and the next they're running out to save their friend.

Then the next month they chair shot the friend.

ANYWAY, the point of all that was that I don't think it's fair for you to say Twilight sucks objectively when I think Wrestling is, frankly, stupid. Or to say that Nascar is silly, etc, etc. Not that it can't be not stupid. It can, I think it definitely can be not stupid.

And to be clear, I don't knock any of you guys for watching it! I'm here on a wrestling forum talking about how to make it better, so I'm clearly invested on some level. I'm just disgusted with myself.

Also, Paralyzer Z, you're well-spoken for a 16-year-old.