How to Watch Pro Wrestling: Having Fun
Have fun while you watch pro wrestling. Kevin Owens sits back to enjoy Le Dinner Debonair, Law and Otis, and John E Bravo gets shot.
I have decided, considering recent events, that this will be a running series. It has come to my attention that there is more than one problem facing the Pro Wrestling viewer, so here we go!
Our first in this series tackled the idea of brand loyalty in pro wrestling and our society. It is hard to avoid but easy to miss or diagnose. What we hope to accomplish: enlighten the hardcore wrasslin fan and convince them that brand loyalty is clouding your judgment and only hurting you.
The other pro wrestling element that gets in the way of enjoying your weekly program is 'fun.' Or allowing one to experience 'fun.' It's always hard to define. Still, other people know when you're having fun (maybe even better than you do).
So my request in this blog is simple: try to realize (in consuming pro wrestling and everything else in the world) that we forget to have fun. A LOT!
There is some science behind it, and we'll take a look, but the vital thing to remember is that I'm trying to help you. I am Gandalf again, and you are Bilbo Baggins. I'm not taking your precious pro wrestling away from you. I'm not going to steal the memories of Stone Cold vs. The Rock in the late '90s and early 2000s. I'm going to help you see that there is more opportunity to enjoy what's in front of you today when you allow yourself to have fun.
What is Fun?
Fun is an abstract, obtuse idea, but others can see it on your face when experiencing it. Searching for definitions of 'fun' sends you on a wild goose chase of terms. Fun equals enjoyment. Enjoyment equals pleasure. Pleasure equals happiness. And happiness is something you feel when you're having fun.
One word after another that none of us can put the finger on. Fun is a feeling.
So how do you have fun? Jason Topp won the SEO battle and came up with 47 Cheap, Fun Things to Do This Weekend. This article is silly, but I bet Jason had a fun time writing it.
He throws in ideas like 'Go to the Park,' 'Watch the Sunset,' 'Pack a Picnic Lunch.' All of these done alone isn't fun, but something Topp might not realize he is doing is creating a list of things to do with the people you care for and love.
It's a random collection of ideas, but he ultimately defines fun as doing stuff with people. Maybe if he is a fan of All Elite Wrestling and decides to update this article, he'll add, "Go to dinner with you buddy and sing show tunes."
Is 'fun' only achieved when we're with other people? No! But when we're with other people who we care about (and they genuinely care about us), we are more willing to let our guard down and be in a moment. We have their love, and we don't need to spend our time proving ourselves or justifying our actions. We can just 'be.'
The same thing goes for book lovers, Video gamers, writers, photographers, chefs, sex addicts (batin')…the list goes on. When you do it alone, it can be so rewarding. And that's because it wasn't about proving yourself to others or competing. It was about doing a thing (anything) for you.
When we've stopped trying to prove to everyone how great we are, life gets easier. And that's when the fun starts to flow through us. But add in a modicum of competition or wiener measuring, and poopoo hits the fan.
Having Fun on Social Media
The most joy (not necessarily fun) I have received from Social Media is when I have a fan of our podcast reach out and tell me that they enjoy the content and are looking forward to more. The second is when a post goes viral, and thousands of people consume it and share it.
All that joy or happiness is fleeting. It immediately becomes a responsibility and desire to reach those heights again. The desired result, however, typically does not occur. And every post that doesn't hit that peak is a challenging and heavy gut punch. Is the juice worth the squeeze? Is it still 'fun,' or is that the difference between feeling happy and experiencing fun? Maybe.
Part of that hard work and effort on social media is because there is an odd desire to find some celebrity status. And now that Social Media looks to be the easiest way to find a celebrity, we will give it a shot.
Just like finding a celebrity status in acting or music, it's very competitive. There is a reason we can't all be famous singers. We either don't have the talent to write or the talent to sing.
There's no reward for your intelligence; instead, the prize is for timing and loudness. And timing is hard to come by, so it's best to make sure that isn't an issue by posting regularly and being as loud as possible.
What is 'loud' on social media? Well, since no one can type a larger font than anyone else, one relies on strong engagement. How do you get strong attention? Hyperbole, black and white thinking, and mixing that all with opposite spectrums of conformity and non-conformity. There is no grey. There is no middle. There is nothing close. It's all or nothing…every…single…time.
And if you don't adopt that philosophy, you risk losing your following and not being the 'loudest' in the room.
Competition to be the 'loudest' becomes your life.
There is a way out! I've seen it and experienced it first-hand through real friendships and bonds made on social media. The Brothers of Discussion were lucky enough to join one of their best friends and followers at the 2020 Royal Rumble. We've also been known to run down numerous Schitt's Creek threads with one of our favorite Twitter followers. But again, this is when the competition has escaped the subconscious, and we prioritize genuine emotion, connection, and conversation.
I recommend you do the same on social media. It does feel great to get thousands of 'likes,' but you should also reach out and DM some of your more cherished social media connections. You won't regret it.
Where is the disconnect between 'Fun' and 'Pro Wrestling'?
Dictionary.com failed us in defining 'fun,' but I feel like we are starting to grasp what it is and how we can achieve it.
Try to separate yourself from the competition and make your time online more about connection.
It sounds simple enough, but why is it so difficult for us to let go and have fun? Stephanie A. Sarkis, Ph.D., wrote an article in Psychology Today and used her expertise in the field to define why we struggle to have fun and experience more fun.
Her number one reason for us, "missing the fun," is "You're worried about what other people will think."
Sarkis continues by saying, "you don't want to look silly in front of other people. You're afraid they'll judge you. Guess what? Other people don't think about you nearly as much as you think they do. Besides, you're not a mind reader: You can't know what is going on in other people's minds. And if they are judging you for being silly and having a good time, then they're people you don't need to know anyway."
It sounds like our mothers' advice while we were preparing for our first years in elementary school. But there is a reason we all heard some version of this growing up. It's because it's true.
I think when we get down to "how to watch Pro Wrestling" and having fun while doing so, the idea that we are "worried what everyone else might think" is the biggest hurdle.
As a wrestling viewer, others challenge your intelligence at the moment you begin consuming it. We've all been asked a question when someone who doesn't watch pro wrestling finds out that you do.
We all know that question.
The question we have all answered a million times before.
The question newbies will learn to hate—the question to which the hardcore fan has scripted and rehearsed multiple responses.
The question could be asked about any number of consumer and entertainment properties that are viewed at a much higher rate than pro wrestling.
Should we all say that question together? That dirty, disgusting, condescending, meaningless, "I'm better than you" question.
*Takes a deep breath in* *Sighs*
That question:
"You know it's fake, right?"
My current response:
"Yes. I do know that pro wrestling is fake. Just like everything in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Game of Thrones, the idea of a President of the United States of America, Batman, Frosty the Snowman, White Jesus, Star Wars, your personality, Mickey Mouse, a Free Market, Santa Claus, and the Easter Bunny is fake."
The point isn't for me to topple one's preconceived notions on different topics and worlds.
The point is to showcase how this question has turned any hardcore wrestling fan into an injured, scared, junkyard dog. We are immediately thrust into a corner and forced to bark our way out. So why would it be any different when dealing with other wrestling fans?
Since our intelligence comes into question because we watch pro wrestling, we all feel the need to go that extra mile to prove how smart we are.
And we don't just prove it to ourselves. We prove it to every living being on planet earth. Including other wrestling fans, people who mention wrestling in public space, people who don't know who you are, and (mostly) people who didn't ask for our opinion.
I am guilty of sharing my knowledge of pro wrestling to folks who didn't ask. I have no qualms about admitting that. I'm sure that if you're a hardcore fan of anything, you've done it too, but even more so for the pro wrestling fan.
Humans are fragile and self-conscious that it makes so much sense for us to want to defend ourselves. To want to build trust, in our opinion. To give our opinion credence and provide value and worth all the time we spend watching sports entertainment.
I'm trying to bring awareness to our actions, so you'll be more likely to recognize it and stop before you begin. Why? Because you'll have more fun!
That's right! We are finally making the connection of having fun watching pro wrestling!
Le Dinner Debonair Was Fun
Let's talk about Le Dinner Debonair.
First of all, take a look!
What is there not to like about this segment?
It's fresh. It's funny. You can tell the actors (don't forget, they are actors) are having a blast. There's a funny song. MJF can sing (Huge point here. This wasn't some dumb Chicago Bears song where everyone is offbeat and off pitch.) And the two guys respected their limits when it came to choreography.
Is it possible AEW knew the results would be 'Love' or 'Hate'? Yes. But I'm hoping Chris Jericho and MJF did this because they have a deep respect for crooning and wanted to create something unique.
So, why all the hate?
There's only one thing people are bringing up that attempt to make Le Dinner Debonair's existence a negative one. "It's not pro wrestling."
It comes from an idea of pro wrestling is 'supposed' to be something specific, which hours of wrestling consumption built. We then created a detailed catalog of every match consumed. Then we made a false connection with real combat sports. And wrapped that back into our reasoning for why we watch Pro Wrestling when we are asked, "you know it's fake, right?"
So how do you get someone to stop hating something (like Le Dinner Debonair) that was so clearly made out of love? Show them this article! Nah…jk…
You can't get someone else to 'see the light,' to be honest. But I made this article to stop you the next time you feel the need to bash a segment like Le Dinner Debonair.
There's room for wrestling to be so much more than you think. Just this year, we've had a Boneyard match, weird Fiend matches, matches in football stadiums, and matches with more cinematic flair than we've ever seen before.
If something like the Fiend is allowed to exist, why can't there be room for something WAY stranger and outside the box? There's room for wrestling to come with an entire Lord of the Rings fantasy backdrop with wrestling matches thrown in between.
Some of you just threw up in your mouth, but I'm okay with that. I still love you.
The point is, we can't get to these new and different ideas when the number of folks so willing to avoid 'fun' has such a large population. Wrestling fans: you do look ridiculous watching pro wrestling 100 hundred times per week. But that's okay! I'm right there with you.
Let go of the Rolodex of wrestling trivia for a minute. Delete your next "Well ackchyually…" tweet. Find a cool hangout spot where folks want to chat about wrasslin'. Accept how doofy we all look. Let wrestling be silly. And let fun into your life!
Have Fun out There
Being preached at is fun! Right? I know. I killed the fun when I decided to write this article. But I hope some of this made sense.
If you can finally give in and let fun win, you're going to enjoy everything around you. Some things do suck. But a lot of stuff ROCKS! And a lot of things can be made more fun just by our own choices.
Le Dinner Debonair was not trying to be the next Broadway show. 'Law and Otis' was not trying to be the next weekly TV drama. And Impact Wrestling does not think they've created the following "Who shot JR?" (which has already been parodied in the Simpson's episode 'Who Shot Mr. Burns?) by blasting John E. Bravo during his wedding. They're all having fun. Tommy Dreamer, probably having the most fun.
Laugh with them! Laugh at them! Crack a smile! Pro Wrestling is way too silly and ridiculous for you not to be having fun!
Hugs and Kisses.
Love Matt.
Let me hear your thoughts in the comments! And if you want to interact with us live, check out the details below:
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