Industry Shockers

I'm in Modesto watching Wrestlemania XXX with one of my best friends and the Undertaker has just lost. For twenty-one straight years the Dead Man has risen victorious at sports entertainment's Superbowl, but tonight he finally fell to the freakish Brock Lesnar. Gasps were heard when the ref counted three. The crowd was not ready for what it witnessed. Shock. Disbelief. Horror! The countenances were absolutely priceless. Just look at the guy in the above photo! These are grown men behaving as if a scripted sport were unscripted. Needless to say, the internet boards lit up within seconds of the finish. The outrage was contageous. If the Undertaker was going to sacrifice his streak, why now? Why to Lesnar? Why would the WWE tarnish a legendary legacy with little build up? This was not the correct decision according to the pundits.

I love it when the WWE pulls one on the "insiders": the people who "know" what's going on in wrestling. The guys who don't work in the business, have never worked in the business, and will never work in the business, telling a business what's best for business. The insiders love to bitch about everything and this gave them plenty of fodder. However, one guy really summed it up when he posted:

All the negative reactions are from sad bitter hardcore fans who burnt out years ago and only watch now to get angry. If for some reason they don't get angry they will bitch about how "predictable" it is. It's pretty pathetic really, some people should just stop watching.

There are simply two kinds of wrestling fans: those who love to analyze every single detail, rank the matches in terms of where they fall historically, pointing out exactly what was good and bad, and those who just like to watch and be entertained by the theatrics.

I'm definitely in the latter group. I reveled in the reaction and found myself completely taken in by the magnitude of the moment. I removed any egotistical desire and allowed all cynicism to wash away. It was like being a kid again. Isn't that what entertainment is about?

-David Driscoll

David Driscoll