I blame Rumbleslam for certain - wasn't going to get it but get drawn, all to easily, towards sports games. Wrestling to me meant Mick Mcmanus, Joe Royale, Big Daddy, Les Kellet and Kendo Nagasaki on ITV Saturday tea-time. Cups of tea, biccies and the occasional hot roll and peanut butter, advert time wrestling with my dad (until I began to hurt him). Missed the whole WWF revival in the 90s by surfing my brains out in Tasmania and then UFC seemed the thing to watch. But BANG suddenly Rumbleslam has pulled me into a world of 'real fakism' - the world of Sports Entertainment, and pulled me in with a vengeance.
In this, the first of a two part blog entry, I look at the world Rumbleslam parodies - the world of Pro Wrestling...
Over the top reality escapism is how I would describe pro-wrestling, a world where reality meets fake... yes the blows and matches are fake, all set up to entertain, to let the audience suspend their belief to enjoy booing at the baddie (or HEEL in wrestling terms) or cheer the goodie (Blue Eye or Baby Face in wrestling terms) and forget about the real life shit that is happening. SO, much the same as watching a good adventure or martial arts film - it seems strange that people will watch the Last Samurai and say how good it is without feeling the need to inform me that the actor didn't actually get sliced with a katana, shot with the rifle or speared by the arrow while a wrestling bout will soon have people telling me - that drop to the head from 10' up was fake - COURSE IF WAS FUCKING FAKE - if it wasn't the dude would be DEAD !
They are actors, on the whole pretty bad, cheesey, actors - BUT they are incredible sports people., Anyone who has done any kind of contact based self defense martial art will know how hard the breakfalls these guys and gals do - UKEMI the way you receive an attack, whether that's fading out, breaking your fall, making them think they have hit to suck them in is an important part of budo - and the pro-wrestlers are freakin brilliant at it (which is what I like about it the most I think) what they do is a martial art no doubt, just as realistic as karate sparring, judo matches etc yet they combine it with story telling. I know that will rankle a fair few people who say karate isn't fake - when's the last time you saw someone break someones face or arm in a karate match then folks? UFC (or whatever cage fighting you are into), Thai boxing etc are different obviously. But Brock Lesnar went from the fake of the wrestling world to the top of the UFC world by basically doing the same thing (only leaving when it was obvious he was a little too dangerous in the cage - oooo drug scandal anyone?).
So, take it for what it is people - an entertaining, skillful and violent STORY ! And then there is Rumbleslam...
A Wrestling game set in a fantasy world setting...
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