Watching alone vs watching with friends.

[BestWrestlingOpinions]

I wanted to start this thread, which is definitely something different from anything else. I recently watched Summerslam 2014 with a friend who was watching back in the day, and I have to say, the environment isn't the same compared to when I watched it alone. At this point, I want to point out that this thread will be about WWE programming and I will explain why later on.

When I'm watching any programming alone (raw, smackdown, PPVs), I feel it is way much better. Being alone means you can "get in the zone", go to the fantasy land, get in the storyline yourself. It sounds nerdy, I know, "it's still real to me dammit, right?", but hey, if you can make the product believable to yourself, it is so much more entertaining. Watching Lesnar beat Cena completely, it was very intriguing. You feel the energy etc. Same with other storylines/matches that involve drama and psychology to the fan.


Now, watching it with a friend, it gets more awkward to get so involved. Mainly because of the nerdy thing. Sure, if you and your friend(s) have accepted it and there is no real awkwardness, then it might be fine, but to me, it isn't the same. Of course, watching with company have other benefits. You can keep yourselves entertained during more unimportant/boring segments/matches. You can joke around at certain things, watch a great match with good spots and enjoy it.


With that said, I will come back to a point I made above about why I only chose WWE programming. It is because it is more based on storyline involvements, twists, drama, which, as mentioned above, is better watching it solo. On the other hand, you can watch RoH, where the storylines aren't the main concern, as opposed to the ring action, and have fun reacting to the high spots with friends etc.


WWE programming, to me, is better watched solo. Get in the zone, get in the mood. Don't get distracted by friends.

 

[Softcore Holly]

If it's friends that generally don't care about wrestling, or in your case someone that stopped following the recent product a while ago then I've much rather watch it solo. They'll be nice about it and will oooh and ahhh at the cool moments but you know they don't really care and would rather do something else. Which is fine since there's no way I would be friends with someone if there wasn't something we can both enjoy

With other wrestling fans that has been watching the Raws/SDs however watching with friends is so much better. We can get into that zone together, share in the big moments that we've all been looking forward to, be shocked at the surprises that none of us saw coming despite all the time we spent reading rumors and such, get annoyed when we see them do something we seriousily disagree with, go nuts when something awesome happens, etc etc etc. OK I guess we can always talk about it later on facebook or w/e but nothing really matches the feeling of being with like-minded people watching something you all really enjoy live, especially when it's something like the WWE.

Of course I enjoy my solo time just like everyone else, as you said there are many advantages to just watching it yourself and there's absolutely nothing wrong with preferring it that way. But for me being with my friends outweighs all that pretty easily, and I look forward to watching SS with this Sunday.

 

[TheICChampion]

I really think it has to do with who you're watching it with. Now I have a friend who's a wrestling fan, but I swear to God he's a mild narcoleptic. What I mean by that is usually he's OK, but sometimes, it doesn't matter what he's doing or what we're watching, he usually can't keep his eyes open. Now, someone like that I'd rather not watch wrestling with. Other friends of mine are a different story, inasmuch as we can watch it, enjoy it and entertain ourselves during boring matches/moments and make predictions, etc. And there's always the fun of watching it downtown and going out to a bar afterward, having a few drinks, catching up or analyzing/re-living cool moments from the PPV.

 

[Creepy Old Man]

I had pals round for WrestleMania one year and it sucked. Everyone just talked and laughed and paid little attention to the matches.

Like the OP I'm a bit of a geek with these things. I like to get "in the zone" and study what's going on. I usually watch myself with good headphones on, and sometimes with my sister and/or my girl pal, both of whom are big fans. It's funny that the only two people I actually enjoy watching wrestling with are women. They're usually programmed to hate this "fake" stuff.

 

[Hbk4life]

Definitely alone, or with my brother, who's as big of a fan as I am and "gets" the ins and outs of wrestling. If someone doesn't appreciate or "get" wrestling, it's a horrifying experience trying to watch it with them. They ask too many questions, laugh at too many things, and poke holes in everything. I watch the network alone and have an absolute blast

 

[WarroBODFan]

It's only my best friend who is a wrestling fan in my group of friends, and we've only watched one show together and that was WM30. It was fun to experience it with him, though he kept getting the urge to read the spoilers on Twitter on his phone as we watched it back in the morning as we're from the UK. So that was a bit annoying as I wanted us to both experience the highs and lows at the same time, but it was fun nevertheless. He's the one that got me into wrestling, but a couple of years on I'm a much bigger fan of WWE than he is. Weird how that works, but hey!

We were both supposed to go to Liverpool for the Raw and Smackdown shows when they came to the UK last week, but he had to pull out because of family reasons, so I ended up going on my own. I still had a blast, and even though some may view it as sad to go to shows on your own, I enjoyed having my own time, my own schedule, eat/sleep/explore whenever I wanted, and during the shows themselves I just got to chat to random strangers about WWE, and it was an absolute blast.

One thing I have noticed I do is pause the show whenever one of my parents come into my room, as if I'm embarrassed to be watching it, but I think it's more because I know they won't appreciate the show and won't understand what's going on. It's silly I know.

I generally enjoy my own company and keep myself to myself, but I also enjoy spending time with my best friend, and like-minded people, hence why I felt comfortable just talking to strangers who I knew were fellow WWE fans. So I'm happy either way as long as the person/people I'm with aren't ruining the experience for me.

 

[Scrotie McBoogerballs]

I watch with my wife, although since Roman Reigns is injured most of the time she has her head in a book and only looks up occasionally.

Also when Lana or Steph comes on she rants about how much she hates them.

 

[BuriedByCena]

I used to watch with friends all the time back in the Attitude Era and Ruthless Aggression Era. It was awesome back then. We all loved it.

Then everyone I knew basically stopped watching after that because wrestling wasn't cool anymore.

Now I prefer to watch alone because wrestling does suck. It has been horrible since 2006. Thankfully RAW is on Mondays because I never hang out with friends on mondays anyway. But if it was on a friday or something, I would also quit. Wrestling is not worth my time. I only watch RAW because there is nothing else on TV monday night. LOL

 

[hatehabsforever]

Generally speaking I prefer to watch it alone. Occasionally my son will watch it with me, but while he knows the wrestlers and basically what's going on, he doesn't really follow it regularly and isn't really I to it. I think he finds the product a little too PG these days.

Most of my friends who used to watch and who in fact got me into wrestling in the first place either don't watch at all anymore, and those that do watch very sporadically. None of them, to the best of my knowledge, are Internet geeks about wrestling like I am. Generally speaking, if there's some internet rumor making the rounds, or we are debating something here on these forums, and I mention it to these guys, they usually have no idea what I'm talking about.

And as an earlier poster stated, watching professional wrestling with a non-fan is a painful experience and frankly at times can be a little embarrassing. Nothing annoys me more than to be watching wrestling when a non fan stops by, only to have a wrestling bunny, or a miniature bull, or some of this crap, which is way too prevalent these days. The reaction is a mixture of mocking and disbelief that I actually enjoy watching the show. Even when it's more regular programming, I quickly get tired of "you know that's all fake, don't you", "oh my god, what's he doing that for", and other similar comments. Personally I would rather just watch the show by myself than subject myself to this aggravation.

 

[Boxhead333]

Funny enough I had the exact same experience with Summerslam 2014. I usually watch wrestling alone, occasionally watching the odd attitude era PPV with my friends when we're chilling at someone's house. However this was the first time I've ever watched a live PPV with friends and I thought it was much more fun. It helped that two of the friends I watched with were big wrestling fans like myself. However one of my friends hadn't watched wrestling in years and he seemed to really enjoy himself. I was explaining to him how unprecedented it is to see John Cena get beat so badly by Brock Lesnar. But it was a great laugh, lots of "oohs" and "aahs" over the high impact moves. Lots of shared wrestling trivia. It helps if you have a couple beers as well. Maybe you just need to watch wrestling with like minded people. I can imagine a wrestling fan watching with a bunch of non fans could get rather awkward. But it's definately not something I'd do every time. The odd Wrestlemania and PPV is enough.

 

[Navi]

I usually watch it with my 23 year old son, who is into it. He knows more than I do these days, and I've been a fan for over 30 years. That's kind of embarrassing.

We'll watch and he'll be on a wrestling forum telling me about the funny threads people are making. I would never watch with a non fan, and even talking about it with someone who isn't interested is a no go.

I get together with some friends of mine in the US on skype once a week and catch up with each other. One of my friends is an avid fan, and when we start the other's go "Oh not men in tights again". We just laugh and continue talking though, but it's kind of a drag knowing everyone else isn't into it. Wrestling fans are a niche group and burrow away when RAW and SD come on. I know I do.

 

[WimpyKid4Life]

I'm a loyal proud passionate WWE fan for life! Maybe that explains why I always try to spread the word and make sure tons and tons of people watch WWE. WWE.com isn't blocked in school, so I would show clips to people and the responses would always be "that's a juiced man" or "lay off the steroids". Some People just don't take WWE serious. If the supporting cast view it as a joke then I recommend watching alone. WWE is the best entertainment out there!

 

[Mustang Sally]

Everyone just talked and laughed and paid little attention to the matches.

Yes, that's the problem......but also part of the fun. Doing things with friends is always preferable, unless the accompanying activity is something on which you have to really concentrate to appreciate.....and pro wrestling doesn't fall under that category. I mean....c'mon now.

Watching with my one & only is better since I'm filled in on crowd reactions I can't hear for myself. (When John Cena appears, the closed-captioning says: "Crowd booing and cheering".....which doesn't really give me a sense of what's really going on.) On the other hand, when watching alone, one can cast a more critical eye on what's happening on-screen, and that's good, too.

Guess WWE does have something for everyone, even if they're not true wrestling fans.

 

[Mudlup50]

While I do see your point I enjoy watching with company. For instance my step dad who isn't really that smart. He watched wrestling from back when(like late 70's, early 80's) and really him watching is what got me religiously watching again. Granted, Monday from 8-11 I'm in my room, locked away watching my Raw! The second watch, I'll watch with him. I'd consider him a cross between a casual fan and a long time fan. His insight quite frequently gets interesting. For instance when Cena didn't run out and help Sheamus/Big Show, I hadn't really thought about it during the first watch. Plus he can compare the characters to old time wrestlers and it adds a mystique and reminds you that the WWE has been around for a while.

I also try to get my sister to watch, she usually doesn't bite. Since February I got her to watch twice. While she doesn't get into it, it's nice talking somebody through storylines to see things you missed or gaping plot holes. Plus I can show her the more internet savvy things(like CM Punk being heckled by a guy in the crowd). Sometimes it's nice to just discuss things with someone who doesn't know.


Kind of funny you posted this, at work today I was thinking I wish I had a group of friends still into wrestling to watch with every Monday. Maybe I'd enjoy Raw more, get to see things from another perspective because I'm not a perfect internet fan or casual fan(who is?). Sadly all of my friends who used to watch either moved away or gave up.

 

[The Gold Standard]

It all depends on who it is you're watching with. We generally only meet up for PPV's, which you can watch on the Network for just $9.99 or big RAWs like Drafts when they we're popular, or SuperShows after WM. We go nuts like we do when we watch football. We talk in depth about stuff we would discuss on the WZ forums, backstage stuff, we trash-talk, and we get in the zone and start yelling.

In my opinion, when you're in a good group of friends and you get into it, that's the best part of wrestling because more often than not you forget the whole thing is scripted; and that is the best thing any viewer can experience.

 

[Dilligaf]

I always watch alone, as everyone at work thinks I should grow up and watch football & that wrestling is for kids & the fact Id rather watch men in their pants feeling each other up than watch football.

I have been invited to the Wrestlemania PPV party at a certain pub in town has by friends outside of work, but I have never gone.

But I have invited a couple of people around to watch it tomorrow night after work for free on my network sub, but none of them have said yes.

But NVM, I'll sit back and enjoy SS none-the-less.

 

[Dave]

The only time I have watched wrestling, namely the WWE, with friends is during the last 4 Royal Rumbles and WrestleManias. And to be honest, I enjoyed it a lot more than I usually do when I am watching it alone.

The difference, I think, comes down to how smarky I become. When I am alone, I generally have a good idea of what is going to happen and I can't seem to be a fan any more. However, when I watch with friends who follow wrestling just as much as I do, I can be a fan again. I can fall back into the mindset of cheering my favourites and booing for the bad guys. There's really no point doing that on you own...

I also feel it is refreshing to not be around smarks from time to time. People who are genuinely interested in the WWE but have no interest of peeking behind the curtain are the best people to be around when you're watching the programming. Their innocence and naivety can really help you get sucked into the results too.

 

[rbv13]

Many of us have very fond memories of watching pro wrestling with either friends or family as we were growing up. My earliest memories involve large get together for special events which made them seem all the more important in my young eyes. The best times I’ve had as a fan took place during my late teens and early twenties when a group of friends would religiously get together for pay per views. What was odd back then is I had two sets of wrestling friends. One group was WCW and the other WWF. I was the only that would regularly attend each sides ppv parties. Now days I find enjoyment participating in forum Live Discussions. I am particularly fond of the chats right here of WZ. Many times what commentary provided in the chat is much more entertaining than the actual show. If anyone is looking for some highly entreating and sometimes insightful chat during an event check out the Live Discussions.

 

[Bookerkingston]

Same ol shit. "You know this is fake right? You know UFC is real right?" I rather watch it ALONE.

 

[Dagger Dias]

It depends on who you watch it with. If you have a group of friends who all enjoy the product and are polite enough to not be distracting to everyone else there when a great match is going on, then definitely watching with others. One of the guys who watches with me often voices his dislike loudly if he does not like a wrestler who shows up. There seems to always be one of these in all my WWE show watching groups. In college I had a roommate who watched with us but he (for reasons still unknown) hated Sheamus. Anytime Sheamus showed up onscreen we would here "NOOOOOOO!!!!! I HATE THAT GUY!!!! He's so stupid!!!!!" and similar comments. No one who watches with me nowadays is as bad as that, but it does get annoying if you're trying to listen to a Bray Wyatt promo and someone starts rambling on about Mass Effect just because they personally dislike Wyatt. I instated a house rule that if there is a promo going on, everyone shuts up. My friends all abide by this rule other than a few rare occassions, I've had to ask them to be quiet so I can hear the promo. Someone started talking during Sting's debut on sunday, he was met with a "Dude, shut up!" and no further distractions were had for that segment.

So, as long as rules regarding talking and other distractions are in place, watching with others is better in general. Watching alone does eliminate the issue of someone distracting you or interrupting something you really wanted to see, as well as no one having to deal with the guy who says "This is stupid and fake go watch UFC because it's real", the downside to watching alone is that if something cool happens and your friends missed it, you might not have anyone to discuss it with in person. This is actually part of why I joined this forum in the first place. That was during a semester when my PPV party group had gone its seperate ways and all three of my roommates that semester disliked wrestling, I wanted more people to discuss the product with. Oddly enough, I found a new group to watch PPV's with the following semester and better roommates moved in the next semester too, but I still stuck around. I prefer watching with friends.

 

[Reiko4Me]

Modern day wrestling, I don't mind watching it with Nephews. I have a six year old nephew that will do flying elbows off the couch, punches and kicks through out the entire event, lol. My other nephews who are 10 and 11 will just be screaming the entire time. All that is fine and makes it fun. I just don't like watching attitude promos like those of Val Venis and have to explain to them what the promos mean, lol.

 

[CKDaimen702]

I completely agree with the OP in that it is better to watch alone. I think the answers to this question will ultimately vary depending on the lifestyle of the person. But objectively, I think it's better to watch alone because when you watch with others it becomes more of a social experience than a viewing one. It's like when you go to the movies and you keep talking through the movie, you are not really getting the full viewing experience. Which is why most (normal) people do not talk much in the movie theaters, even though they are with friends. But with wrestling, people yap yap and yap. There are pros and cons. Pros are predictions and trash talking...but the cons are reduced focus and a diluted all-around viewing experience.

 

[rocknrollchick5]

I always watch wrestling with my dad. We're both huge WWE fans. We'll always try to go to events when they're in our area, and we've gone to WrestleManias 20, 21, 25, 27, 28, & 29 together. We always have fun every week watching Raw & Smackdown. He loves to tease me because of my intense hatred for John Cena. It's fun having my dad for a wrestling buddy. We've even gotten my mom familiar with some of the guys too. So yeah it's pretty cool!

 

[DCLXVI]

Watch with my roommate and got him re-interested in wrestling about 6 months ago. We dig it and get into different characters, he gets it, etc. - don't know if anyone else would but we have been long close friends. He looks forward to every show as do I. Does make it funner sometimes.