The Wrestling Bard 11.22.08: Wrestling as Art

Now, I don’t want to take up too, much time, but something caught my eye this week. As I’ve mentioned, my laptop has started no selling the battery, and when you have to share a computer in a family of eight, this severely limits your computer time. That’s one of the reasons that last week’s column was so short. But at any rate, I’ve been using the last week or so to catch up on some of the columns I’ve missed over the last month or so.

This article in particular caught my attention, and not in a positive way. Those who have followed me since day one know that Jake Chambers and I have had problems in the past. I’ve read most of his articles, mostly for a good laugh, and the occasional provoking thought, but I have said that sometimes it’s hard for me to stomach some of his stranger theories. But this article crossed a line that I really hoped no one would cross.

I’m rather open about my beliefs, and it’s gotten me a TON of heat before. I try to avoid discussing it often because I know that several people can’t handle it without being rude and callous. When it comes to arguing theology, I take the Barack Obama approach and try to point out the good in my side without pointing out the stupidity of other’s opinions. Mostly because I’ve been there at certain points in my life, and I really understand the logic in being atheist or agnostic.

Which is why I’m not going to go on a tirade bashing Jake for his beliefs, whatever they are. Considering the fact that I don’t even know if Jake really believes anything he writes, I don’t think its fair for me to bash beliefs that I don’t even know exist. I do think that Jake should apologize to those he offended, including myself. I was hoping that Jake was going to write a well thought-out argument for atheism in wrestling fans, but it seemed more like he was trying to offend believers to get hits. If that was his goal he succeeded. I was kind of hoping that Jake would apologize, but after reading the other two articles he’s posted since then, he has not. However, Jake, if you read this, I am asking you, as a fellow columnist, for an apology. Hopefully, you will respond in kind, and this will be the end of the matter.

We will now bring you a brief commercial break:

Defining Three Terms

Last week’s column unsurprisingly brought out all ten smart fans of Batista, and most of them, (notwithstanding those who seem to like me well enough), responding with the usual bile. This one, from Nick , however, caught my eye:

“Pointless…

BTW, I hate it when people chant «You can’t wrestle». You’re an idot to encourage this! Really! You should respect the guy’s in the ring who risk their lives for us. Even if it’s the Great Khali.”

As I’ve done before, I’m going to dissect this, with several quick points:

1. Ultimately, all of the articles on 411 are pointless. We have no effect on the wrestling world, really. It had a point, and the point was to voice my opinion.
2. And fans are allowed to voice their opinion, and that includes, “You can’t wrestle!” chants. If poor widdle Batista can’t handle ‘is widdle feelings getting hurt because some fans know he sucks in the ring, he’s in the wrong business. As long as you stay in the stands and don’t throw trash, your ticket says you can voice your opinion.
3. Batista does have talent and can wrestle. He just doesn’t. That’s the problem.
4. I actually like the Great Khali (in small doses). He puts forth more effort than Batista, and he physically “can’t” do what Batista can.
5. I never said I don’t respect Batista. I simply stated that I’m not a fan. If you’ve read this , you would know that I am all about respecting every wrestler, regardless of talent. But just because I respect him doesn’t mean I have to enjoy him.

Aside from defending what I said, because the guy misunderstood me, I also thought this was the perfect lead-in to what I want to discuss. My favorite class this semester has been Art Appreciation, and since I view professional wrestling as art, I thought I should talk about what I have learned this year and see what other people think about it. Before I proceed any further, I want to define three terms.

enjoy: to take pleasure in something

appraise: to form or give an opinion of somebody’s merits or something’s quality

appreciate: to understand fully the meaning or significance of a situation

I think most readers on this site do one of these three on a fairly regular basis. There’s definitely a ton of “appraisers” of wrestling, the guys and gals who give star ratings based purely on quality like it’s the gospel. There are those who “enjoy” the product (often called “marks” derisively by the “smarts”, but they are the true fools, since the marks at least enjoy wrestling), the fans of wrestling who are forgiving of average matches and are just in it to enjoy the show and have a good time.

I think what most people do the least is “appreciating”. Everyone from non-fans to “marks” to the members of the IWC has trouble with this concept. However, I am of the opinion that unless you appreciate the effort, the passion, the charisma, the science, and the artistry of wrestling, you have no right to appraise it. And while I do not think you need to appreciate the inner workings of wrestling to enjoy it, I have found that because I do appreciate these things, I enjoy wrestling more than when I was ignorant.

And let us make this clear…you can definitely appreciate something without enjoying it, and enjoy something without appreciating it. Many people are self-centered and only want the wrestlers to entertain them, and have little appreciation for the effort or storytelling. Not to seem too cruel to some of the hardcore ECW fans, but Nick does have a point. Those who chant “You can’t wrestle!”, “You f***** up!”, “Boring!” or “You sold out!” are only concerned about themselves. They have a right to voice their opinion, because they bought a ticket, but it is selfish. As somebody who appreciates every wrestler for the risks they put themselves at on a nightly basis, that kind of behavior makes me shake my head.

On the other hand, you can learn to appreciate something even if you don’t enjoy it. I can’t stand looking at Picasso’s paintings and sculptures. They just aren’t visually pleasing to me at all. I do not enjoy his work. But I do appreciate his non-conformist ideals, and respect that he expressed himself the way he wanted to, and not how others told him to. I do believe he is one of the greatest of all time, he’s just not my cup of tea. Kind of like how fans of work rate feel about Hulk Hogan.

Another example for me is lucha libre. I was raised on American Wrestling. Guys like Hulk Hogan, Sting, Shawn Michaels, the Undertaker, and Ric Flair were the wrestlers that caught my eye. When I first saw Rey Mysterio, I was amazed by him, but guys like Psychosis, Konnan, Juventud Guerrera and La Parka did nothing for me. And it was world travelled wrestlers like Bret Hart, the Canadian Chrises and Eddie Guerrero that REALLY piqued my interest. Eddie, Malenko, Benoit and Jericho could all fly with the best of them, especially Eddie and Jericho, but they also knew how to mat wrestle, apply submissions, hit suplexes, and tell a story. Rey Mysterio may be the best pure flyer of all time, but he’s just not in the same class as those four.

I don’t enjoy most lucha libre. I hate all the pointless rotations and modifications of armdrags and roll-ups and flips and dives. I don’t like the spotfest mentality of all their matches and I think it all runs together. But I can appreciate that it is a different style, a different culture, and is more like a ballet than a sporting event. The grace with which the greatest luchadors perform and the passion they have is great. Not to mention that they still have clear heels and faces, something that isn’t done very well in other parts of the world. So even though I’d rather watch Kobashi or Liger, or Regal and Finlay, or Flair and Steamboat, than El Hijo del Santo and Blue Panther, I can still appreciate their work.

Wrestling IS Art

One of the common misconceptions from non-wrestling fans is that (most) professional wrestling fans are entirely aware that it is not a sport. I hate when people tell me that it is fake. Since most of these guys are jocks and preps who pleasure themselves to films like Braveheart and Gladiator, I am convinced that these people are quite stupid. Honestly, if you like violent movies, I don’t see how you can’t at least appreciate wrestling for what it is. Pro wrestling is NOT a sport. Like it or not, Vince is right to call it entertainment, because that is what it is. It is a very special kind of entertainment, and Vince should take pride that he makes “Wrestling Entertainment”. But it is entertainment, and more than that, is performance art.

Wrestling is not a sport, but it is an athletic event, and wrestlers are athletes. Wrestling is not a movie, but it is a drama, and wrestlers are actors. Wrestling is not a Broadway Production, but it is a morality play, and wrestlers are storytellers. It is that unique blend of athleticism, acting, and storytelling that puts wrestling its own little niche. It’s why wrestling is truly unique and why there is a 411 WRESTLING section, and it doesn’t have a niche in the sports or TV/movies section.

Someday, wrestling will be accepted as performance art. In retrospect, I can almost see what Vince is thinking with his “entertainment” approach. If it is not presented as a sport, than this gives it a chance to shine as entertainment. Entertainment includes movies, plays, music, television dramas, and so many other things that are considered to be art. If Vince can get the rest of the world to take wrestling seriously as art, then I will forgive him for butchering the purity of wrestling. I wish he wouldn’t be so paranoid about “wrestling”, but I do think his heart is in the right place.

We wrestling fans often complain about the “Did you know?” segments that show up on WWE programming weekly. But they are just Vince’s attempts to validate that his company is not some kind of circus, but a legitimate form of entertainment and performance art. “We” may know all of these facts, but we are already hooked on wrestling, so we don’t see the value in it. But if one person sees that RAW has been around for nearly sixteen years with fresh material every week, and realizes that wrestling might be more than sweaty men rolling around, it’s worth the ten seconds of “inconvenience” to those already initiated.

Yes, it’s another short one. I’ve been kind of rushed recently, but I should have some more free time next week to do a real column. I’m also running out of ideas at the moment. If anybody has something that they would like to hear about, just send it in. This is another chance for to have a say in what you read.

In the meantime, there is some other great reading around here…

Mike Chin talks diverse wrestling styles.

Daniel Wilcox discusses the upcoming match between John Cena and Chris Jericho.

Ari, Berman, Westerfield, and Baur make their picks for this weekend’s ROH events.

Michael O recapsSmackdown! and makes me wonder if I can have certain people banned from commenting on my articles? Anybody that has an IP with anything to do with money is generally ignored by me, but it’s a shame other readers have to put up with it.

Weyer analyzes Scott Keith’s new book honestly and makes me very happy.

The readers take a stab at booking Christian’s WWE return in the Fink’s Payload.

J.D Dunn reviews one of the Greatest Pay Per Views of all time. When Great Muta has a good match, you know it’s something special.

The Boss and Jeremy Thomas have the 4 Rs of Impact, Smackdown, and Driven.

And Ryan Bias (old joke) answers your questions!

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Oh yeah. And check this out too. Please?