GOTNW Posted May 30, 2016 Report Share Posted May 30, 2016 A lot of people seem to have this fixated idea of what wrestling is and think there is only one right way to do it. That's pretty boring. Due to wrestling's peculiar nature I have often wondered how far the medium could and will go, not so much in the "genres" it will creat in itself but means to express itself. Wrestling is a simulation of a fight. That's a very broad definition. An action movie scene is also a simulation of a fight. We've kind of seen some wrestling TV shows experiment with it (Lucha Underground most famously, maybe Wrestling Society X as well?) but I wouldn't be quick to write off expressing wrestling through unconventional means while still calling it wrestling. And while we (well at least I personally) often equate Worked MMA with wrestling I wonder if we could go even further. What about worked boxing and other single martial art fights? Maybe someone will go all the way and say a work of any kind is pro wrestling in its core sense, even if it is say, an NBA game. Here's a short animation that was one of the things that made me think about this: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted May 30, 2016 Report Share Posted May 30, 2016 Moving to Military Industrial Suplex, but have at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fxnj Posted May 30, 2016 Report Share Posted May 30, 2016 I've made a topic in the past giving a serious look to mainstream boxing as a form of pro wrestling http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/32105-boxing-is-pro-wrestling/&do=findComment&comment=5703524 I think modern boxing exists as a hybrid between a real sport and pro wrestling. It's not "worked" in the traditional sense but it is pretty close to that and pro wrestling style characters and feuds have become an inseparable part of sport's drawing power. The same thing could be said about MMA, though its fans generally seen much more insecure about the pro wrestling influence. To an extent, I think pro wrestling has left an inescapable influence on all combat sports and I would welcome any other serious critique of them as forms of pro wrestling. I have also been thinking about making a topic for Trump's presidential campaign as a form of pro wrestling. I think there is a lot to discuss there for how he has used the pro wrestling playbook to draw the sort of interest WWE dreams of garnering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gutenberger Posted May 31, 2016 Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 I have also been thinking about making a topic for Trump's presidential campaign as a form of pro wrestling. I think there is a lot to discuss there for how he has used the pro wrestling playbook to draw the sort of interest WWE dreams of garnering. Which would only be logical, since there is that connection and he has his experiences in this area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost Posted May 31, 2016 Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 I don't see worked MMA or worked boxing taking off. Pride and K1 overtook shoot style pro-wrestling in popularity. Boxing fans would want the real thing and I've never heard anyone wanting to bring back Brawl For All. However, boxing and MMA, whilst not being a work, are still heavily manipulated. Guys who are big draws and have lots of charisma are often fed lesser opponents so they can stay on top. If Lucha Underground proves popular, I speculate that pro-wrestling will become more like a regular TV show than something resembling a legit sport. I don't know what ratings LU get but I've seen positive reviews of it in the non-wrestling press, I can imagine AMC, Netflix (or whoever) jumping on the bandwagon. As an addendum: The Wrestler achieved critical acclaim in 2008 and whilst it didn't paint wrestling a glorious light necessary, it was the first film that took wrestling seriously. I wonder if that's influenced the general audience to look at wrestling through a different lens and see it as something more than just a goofy carnival sideshow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overbooked Posted May 31, 2016 Report Share Posted May 31, 2016 I'm not sure wrestling has particularly changed, more the presentation of it. Are there many matches put together in a way that would look out of place 10, 15 years ago? I can see how some of it is executed more slickly, but I don't see a leap in how stories are told in the ring. Lucha Underground is different in terms of look, feel and general production style, but once the bell rings isn't that new as such. Or maybe I'm just watching the wrong stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funkdoc Posted June 1, 2016 Report Share Posted June 1, 2016 thread needs more chikara & kaiju big battel i mean what wrestling videos have gone viral in recent years? the joey ryan dickplex and those hypnotists. there's room for a major player to get in on some of that imo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laz Posted June 2, 2016 Report Share Posted June 2, 2016 There's room in pro wrestling for all styles (IMO) as long as it fits two criteria: 1) It takes place in a ring. 2) The core idea is a simulation of a combat sport. If you see an action movie that's nothing but gunfights and one that's nothing but wire fu, you may prefer one over the other but neither one is being done "wrong." If there was only one concrete way to have a wrestling match then a lot of great matches and workers wouldn't have come around. I'm still waiting for a wrestling show (televised or internet only) that presents itself as a reality show. Not in the "let's have stupid contests" manner like the televised seasons of NXT, but more like how TNA (of all companies) presented Reaction. Go the step further and bend kayfabe to make it more believable (so-and-so wears a mask because he both doesn't want to endanger his family but also because it allows marketing opportunity, or whatever). Add enough realism with the interactions, less hyperbolic mic screaming and more "natural" arguments, and it could work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOTNW Posted June 2, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 2, 2016 I think we're way past the point of needing a ring to call it prowres with all the falls count anywhere matches, WWF's hardcore division, DDT holding shows in pools and public parks and also microindies like Gatoh Move and whatever the hell the sex dungeon Takaiwa wrestled that one time in was using only mats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap Posted June 2, 2016 Report Share Posted June 2, 2016 The appeal of wrestling more broadly, to build and get one buy into the drama of competition, is so undeniable. Mainstream sports, political speeches, movies, ect.... how wrestling has been building drama, telling stories, and constructing narratives is very easily tracable in other forms of media/entertainment. The influence is a two way street of course, but wrestling has certainly made its mark and I can see how the lines are blurring in some ways. Where one draws the line of what actually constitutes wrestling is or isn't - eh... I am not sure what to make of that. I just know Wrestling needs more brands that sort of claim the title of wrestling and push the boundaries, think outside the box. I am not even sure mainstream companies need to get on that train directly. Fringes (be it in music, film, and even wrestling's own history) keep everyone on their toes and have the ability to make headway for progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOTNW Posted June 17, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkQud-TXMxg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Migs Posted June 21, 2017 Report Share Posted June 21, 2017 There's room in pro wrestling for all styles (IMO) as long as it fits two criteria: 1) It takes place in a ring. 2) The core idea is a simulation of a combat sport. If you see an action movie that's nothing but gunfights and one that's nothing but wire fu, you may prefer one over the other but neither one is being done "wrong." If there was only one concrete way to have a wrestling match then a lot of great matches and workers wouldn't have come around. I'm still waiting for a wrestling show (televised or internet only) that presents itself as a reality show. Not in the "let's have stupid contests" manner like the televised seasons of NXT, but more like how TNA (of all companies) presented Reaction. Go the step further and bend kayfabe to make it more believable (so-and-so wears a mask because he both doesn't want to endanger his family but also because it allows marketing opportunity, or whatever). Add enough realism with the interactions, less hyperbolic mic screaming and more "natural" arguments, and it could work. This is something I think about every time I watch Total Divas. Old school wrestling had a lot of proto-reality show aspects - characters playing enhanced versions of themselves, situations that are setup but not "scripted" per se, the performers insisting on the reality of the situation in interviews... it's really pretty easy to translate. And it could help broaden the market... I know a lot of people who watch Total Divas but not the main shows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordi Posted June 22, 2017 Report Share Posted June 22, 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkQud-TXMxg That is GLORIOUS. Deserves some kind of award just for the sound editing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laz Posted June 22, 2017 Report Share Posted June 22, 2017 Backyard wrestling from India makes me way happier than it should Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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