This is something that actually brought me onto these forums. This was actually a topic discussed in the Raw LD. This was, mind you, the RAW LD I was lurking on for the lulz. But there was something said in the LD that actually piqued my interest very much. A poster named Coco The Monkey, who seems smart enough to separate the shit from the even more shit, said something the likes of which I wasn't sure whether I agreed or disagreed with. I thought. I thought some more. I forgot about it because I have better things to do than think about wrestling for the day. I joined Wrestlezone. And then I got a barrage of "Alt!" cries. Probably because I can actually write legibly and with decent grammar. But still, here's what he said, that got me to thinking.
Congrats Coco, you got me thinking more about the current product, and what exactly your statement means. The notion that wrestling is entertainment for morons... It holds quite some truth to it. Let's face it, wrestling writers aren't exactly Pulitzer winners. The days of Hemingway and Fitzgerald accepting money to write shitty movie scripts to back their legitimate writing is over. The truly great writers have instead decided, smartly, that being involved in the wrestling business is like being a leper in New York City. Even then, Vince McMahon has decided that he wants his writers to come from good old Hollywood. Where absolute shit is peddled on the streets like a common prostitute, to lure in impressionable, hormone-heavy teenagers who will, you know, buy shit and stuff. He's decided that in replacement of writing which actually challenges the mind, WWE has instead decided to go with a more Hollywood based style writing, filled with useless name dropping and cultural references that no one cares about. TNA, you're no better. Or have you decided "Icing" a sixty year old man on television isn't cool anymore. The point being, let's face it, WWE is reducing itself down to America's lowest common denominator. Then again, it was pretty well there, at least spare for some good moments here and there. Still, the concept of an intellectual wrestling fan is about as big an oxymoron as a well payed teacher. Perhaps it's because we allow ourselves to be numbed by the poor writing, and thus have come to expect nothing more from our wrestling companies.
But then again, should we? This is, after all, glorified barbarism. This is the spiritual grandchild of the Roman Gladiators, the notion of fighting becoming a spectacle between modern day Adonis figures. Pardon me for insinuating that Roman's never left the Coliseum with ethical questions, but the point seems quite simple, that people didn't come to the Coliseum to think. Still, we know better. We've been introduced to modes of television that inspire us to think. Hell, even certain wrestlers and angles have inspired us to think. And really, all wrestling really amounts to is melodrama theater. The conflict, the story, the resolution. Thus, if it is theater, shouldn't we hold it to a higher standard than the aforementioned barbarism I alluded to earlier. If we're to uphold wrestling is theater, shouldn't we expect at least similar writing, rather than the simplistic, bare bone approach we see now. Sure, there are so many stories that can be told, but isn't it more enjoyable when the wrestling engages your thought process, and by proxy, makes you more engaged.
Look, it's actually more simple than it seems. Here's what it all boils down to.
1. Should wrestling promote thought from its audience?
2. Why do we choose to allow such writing that doesn't force us to think, if you think wrestling should make us think?
3. Does this cause the perceived "lower" status of wrestling fans, that we don't force a more elaborate story?
4. How do we get the point where we can allow for thinking in watching professional wrestling?
Edit: I've just noticed both the man I quote (Assuming), and my title have the word, "Monkey". Coco, you are not obliged to dance
Congrats Coco, you got me thinking more about the current product, and what exactly your statement means. The notion that wrestling is entertainment for morons... It holds quite some truth to it. Let's face it, wrestling writers aren't exactly Pulitzer winners. The days of Hemingway and Fitzgerald accepting money to write shitty movie scripts to back their legitimate writing is over. The truly great writers have instead decided, smartly, that being involved in the wrestling business is like being a leper in New York City. Even then, Vince McMahon has decided that he wants his writers to come from good old Hollywood. Where absolute shit is peddled on the streets like a common prostitute, to lure in impressionable, hormone-heavy teenagers who will, you know, buy shit and stuff. He's decided that in replacement of writing which actually challenges the mind, WWE has instead decided to go with a more Hollywood based style writing, filled with useless name dropping and cultural references that no one cares about. TNA, you're no better. Or have you decided "Icing" a sixty year old man on television isn't cool anymore. The point being, let's face it, WWE is reducing itself down to America's lowest common denominator. Then again, it was pretty well there, at least spare for some good moments here and there. Still, the concept of an intellectual wrestling fan is about as big an oxymoron as a well payed teacher. Perhaps it's because we allow ourselves to be numbed by the poor writing, and thus have come to expect nothing more from our wrestling companies.
But then again, should we? This is, after all, glorified barbarism. This is the spiritual grandchild of the Roman Gladiators, the notion of fighting becoming a spectacle between modern day Adonis figures. Pardon me for insinuating that Roman's never left the Coliseum with ethical questions, but the point seems quite simple, that people didn't come to the Coliseum to think. Still, we know better. We've been introduced to modes of television that inspire us to think. Hell, even certain wrestlers and angles have inspired us to think. And really, all wrestling really amounts to is melodrama theater. The conflict, the story, the resolution. Thus, if it is theater, shouldn't we hold it to a higher standard than the aforementioned barbarism I alluded to earlier. If we're to uphold wrestling is theater, shouldn't we expect at least similar writing, rather than the simplistic, bare bone approach we see now. Sure, there are so many stories that can be told, but isn't it more enjoyable when the wrestling engages your thought process, and by proxy, makes you more engaged.
Look, it's actually more simple than it seems. Here's what it all boils down to.
1. Should wrestling promote thought from its audience?
2. Why do we choose to allow such writing that doesn't force us to think, if you think wrestling should make us think?
3. Does this cause the perceived "lower" status of wrestling fans, that we don't force a more elaborate story?
4. How do we get the point where we can allow for thinking in watching professional wrestling?
Edit: I've just noticed both the man I quote (Assuming), and my title have the word, "Monkey". Coco, you are not obliged to dance
