Why do Adults still watch Pro Wrestling? (a defense)

The other day I was watching a WWE program and a friend of mine walked in and asked how I could still be watching that. She claimed it was a show intended for children. And instead of defending my supposed guilty pleasure my face turned red and I acted like a child who gets caught doing something naughty.

Like most people who enjoy pro wrestling I started watching when I was a kid. It was just so much fun to see these larger than life heroes and villains battle it out. It was like my comic books had come to life. Though it was somewhat predictable; you knew the good guy would always win in the end.

That was then. This is now.

The average audience sampling of a wrestling crowd is made up of young boys and their parents, pre-teen girls who think John Cena is good looking, the creepy old men who think those pre-teen girls are good looking, and of course Chris Hansen filming “To Catch a Predator”. (oh yes, i worked in a pedophile and Hansen joke!) So, why is this motley assortment (male 18-30 demographic) gathered in the arena and viewing at home? What does pro wrestling offer that attracts them so? I mean all the companies pull no punches, they admit a fixed match and its staged spots (to a degree). Quick tangent- while most of the action inside the ring is designed so the wrestlers receive the least amount of damage, they DO get hurt and they ARE athletic (well most of the good ones are). Falling off of 30ft cage or getting hit with some “foreign object” can never be an enjoyable experience for anyone.

A good wrestler, the most entertaining ones, are 60% athlete 40% actor. Now, good wrestlers don’t always get the “push” they deserve. But that has to do with the backstage politics, of which, I have no idea what goes on. But every now and then you find a wrestler who is just fun to watch, fun to listen, and for the time they are on t.v. makes you forget how miserable your day was. Not that you can’t enjoy it if you had a fantastic day either.

Pro Wrestling is a form of escapism. Its the suspension of disbelief that one watches a movie with. You know that Christian Bale isn’t really Batman, but for those 2 hours, you pretend he is. It’s the same principle to wrestling. Also, wrestlers have a bit of “rock star” attitude in them. A rock star basically goes up on stage and acts like a dick. He works the crowd and acts like being at that concert is the only place in the world you want to be. When he gets off stage he may be a totally different person, but the illusion is what matters.

Is that wrestler really some big bad monster who loves breaking people in half? On camera, yes. In real life,I highly doubt it. Is Jimmy Wang Yang really an Asian Cowboy? No. (are there even any Asian cowboys?)

Pro Wrestling is just fun damnit! The economy is diving into a recession, upon graduation many college grads will find a job market beyond bleak (yay me!), and people are losing their mortgages. So, if for 2 hours they can be entertained for free on t.v. and forget their woes and just enjoy themselves, so be it.