The No Smark Zone 19: Suspending Disbelief

[Kaedon]

The 19th No Smark Zone: The Suspension of Disbelief


Well we are just one column away from the big 2-0. The columns might become less frequent as I start back up at school but I will try to keep it up as regularly as possible. I might have to do more “Fact Or Fiction†type columns but from what I can tell, that’s not a problem at all.


The Suspension of Disbelief
This is something I have been wanting to talk about for a long time now. Before I get too deep into it, I will define what I mean by it. Suspending disbelief is essentially pretending. In this case it has to do with wrestling but it also applies in books, stage, movies, TV, and sometimes in music. How it applies to wrestling is this. When you see Terry Funk and Mick Foley in the ring arguing and getting really heated your mind goes “I know they are friends and they aren’t really mad at each other.†If you “suspend disbelief†you treat that for what it is pretending to be, two guys who hate each other guts having an argument. If you suspend disbelief you get on one side or the other. “God damn it Mick is right†or “You now what, fuck Mick Foley, BEAT HIS ASS TERRY!! Now why am I talking about this you might ask? Because I have come to the conclusion that a lot of fans, especially so called, smart fans, don’t do it anymore. Younger fans and female fans are a lot more willing to do it than older male fans, probably because of what happens as people grow older. As men get older they become very rigid in what they believe and if something doesn’t agree with it, poof out the window. But the suspension of disbelief is the whole reason to watch wrestling.

A 9 year old now a days knows that wrestling is fake, but he doesn’t care because he wants to see Randy Orton get his ass kicked because he acts like a cocky little fucking prick! He picks on old men, he hits people from behind and runs away unless he can sneak attack someone. Why wouldn’t you want to see him get his ass kicked? Because you don’t like the guy he’s wrestling. That’s fine. There have been people who have hated faces from day one. It happened with The Rock. It almost happened with Hulk Hogan a few times. I’m not saying that NO ONE who cheers for a heel suspends disbelief because I cheer heels all the time. Shit I did it last night. As soon as I saw Orton was gonna hit that fucked up neck/backbreaker he has I was like YES DO IT! Because it’s a sick ass move IMO and I love to watch it. I cheer for Morrison every time I see him because his character is so ridiculous that I have to like it. I get mad when he reads his poetry and acts like he’s the king of shit because he’s fucking annoying but I want that to happen. I want to be pissed, I want to be annoyed. That’s why I love JBL. He can make me laugh in spite of myself. And it happens all over the place in real life. Do you think only Right-Winged morons watch Bill O’Riley and read his website? Fuck no. A lot of people watch that shit because they WANT to get mad. Same thing with continually wanting to watch a heel in wrestling.

But back to the topic, I believe that if you don’t suspend disbelief, you aren’t
getting the full wrestling experience. Wrestling is supposed to be interemotional. It’s supposed to connect with the fans on a deeper level. When you watch Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage leading up until Wrestlemania VIII, if you suspended disbelief you said “God damn that Ric Flair is a motherfucking prick and I hope Randy Savage kicks his lilly white ass all over the arena.†Or something to that effect. Or you might have said “Woooooo, I cant wait to see the pictures of Liz, wooooooooo because I wanna be a kiss stealin, wheelin dealin, son of a son of a gun!†Either way, you made an emotional investment in the match and the feud. And nobody wants to fucking do that anymore and it’s fucking sickening.

I mean really, when you sit there and watch a gladiator movie and in the middle of a fight scene one guy looks at his Rolex to see what time it is. What do you say? “Oh well this fake movie had an actor who didn’t take off his watch.†Or do you go? WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS, THIS IS A GOD DAMN GLADIATOR MOVIE, WHY THE FUCK IS HE WEARING A ROLEX!?†Who do you think is more emotionally invested? And I cant for the life of me figure out why people wouldn’t want to do that. Wrestling, like movies, books, and TV is an escape. And why do we need one? Because the world is seriously fucked up. So why not go back to ancient Rome? Why not watch Harry Potter fight Voldermort? (sp?) It’s not like you are fucking up your body using drugs, alcohol, or over eating. It’s an escape into the imagination. For two hours I’m not gonna worry about anything and say “Fuck I hope I get to see Orton beat John Cena’s ass because I don’t like him.â€

Everyone is so fucking sterile now it makes me sick. People worry about “workrate†and how many moves a guy uses, quit trying to quantify everything. Your over-analyzing it and it sucks the fun out of wrestling. That’s not to say if you see something fucked up and out of place you shouldn’t call it bcause life is balance but jesus chist none of these so called “smart fans†do that. They don’t realize that this shit is this simple, you either get behind a guy, or you don’t, and that’s it. “He punched an old lady, ahahah fucking cool†or “He punched and old lady, what a god damn prick I hope someone bets his fucking ass.†You know what a smark says when that happens? “That guy who punched the old lady is trying to get heat, look at what he has lowered himself to†and that attitude pisses me right the fuckoff. They want to analyze and bullshit like that. Sit back and watch the show. If you don’t like it, turn it the fuck off and go watch something else because your whining means nothing to anyone but you and others who already agree with you.

I think you need to suspend disbelief to truly enjoy wrestling. If you notice, the ones who do don’t bitch nearly as much. Do you know what those of us who do this do when we see something that bores is, we turn it off because we are no longer invested. That’s where the investment kicks in for smarks because then they have something to whine and complain about. People are so worried now about whatever that they won’t allow themselves to suspend disbelief and they are losing out on some great fun. I will close it up by telling you about my Summerslam experience. I was in a full sports bar. About 1000 people there. Me and my friend Chaya Guerrero (no relation) were sitting having a great time. She enjoyed watching Kane beat the shit out of Finlay and booing Booker T’s pompous ass. We were yelling, counting the falls like were at the show and getting pissed when the heels took the advantage. We were having a great time. There some smart fans seated right next to me who sat there and talked the whole time. Analyzed every match and said shit like “God a midget in wrestling, how stupidâ€, “I cant believe that they are humiliating Booker T with this gimmickâ€, or “Here comes the 5-Knuckle Shuffleâ€. Stoned face. The only time they smiled is when they were talking about fucking one of the DIVA’s or laughing at the little kids cheering for John Cena. If that’s how you wanna be, fine. Enjoy it in your own way, but don’t be a fucking smug superior prick about it. You’re not smarter than anyone, especially those kids, because they know how to take something or leave something for what it is, and that’s it. They don’t sit and watch with a scorecard. They don’t critique every move, and they don’t sit there for a whole PPV and complain about the WWE’s booking style. They either watch it, or leave and go do something else. So I guess that’s how I’ll end it. Love it or leave it and SHUT THE FUCK UP!!

 

[kingovkings]

wicked read and well put and sooooooooooooo true

 

[Soulpower]

Great read, even if I don't agree with a lot of it. I'll rep you when I can... also this!! :gun_rifle: :gun_rifle:

 

[PeepShow]

Good points, possibly your best yet Kaedon. I may have to actually agree with everything this time.....lol. Rep for that. Keep it up

 

[Cena_Buttocks]

The Chain Gang approves of this topic. I look forward to reading some more of this great literature from you, Mr. Kaedon!

When I saw Cena FU the 8 feet tall, 800 pound Prince Khali, I really believed that John was the world's strongest man. Of course, now I know that Mark Henry and not Cena is the world's stongest man.

I have given you some of my reputation as a token of my gratitude for writing such a wonderful column!

 

[Flair for The Gold]

I agree with you to an extent. When I'm watching a Wrestling show or PPV I don't sit there with a notebook and jot everything down, of course. In fact, I do pretty much everything you do. But after, when its all over, I do believe there is a place for critiquing. Its what puts everything into perspective. So, I believe there has to has to be a bit of a mark, and a smark in you to enjoy wrestling to its fullest.

You still get a rep though, great job.

 

[CenaMark54]

Kaedon another excellent article once again. I agree with you 100%. Sometimes people take wrestling too literally and refuse to enjoy the experience.

 

[MattHardyV1]

I think that the internet makes us all bad wrestling fans.....it makes us all become smarter about the product and makes us able to judge better.....Honestly it has killed all my innocence

Awesome Read :gun_rifle:

 

[monkeystyle]

The 19th No Smark Zone: The Suspension of Disbelief


Well we are just one column away from the big 2-0. The columns might become less frequent as I start back up at school but I will try to keep it up as regularly as possible. I might have to do more “Fact Or Fiction†type columns but from what I can tell, that’s not a problem at all.


The Suspension of Disbelief
This is something I have been wanting to talk about for a long time now. Before I get too deep into it, I will define what I mean by it. Suspending disbelief is essentially pretending. In this case it has to do with wrestling but it also applies in books, stage, movies, TV, and sometimes in music. How it applies to wrestling is this. When you see Terry Funk and Mick Foley in the ring arguing and getting really heated your mind goes “I know they are friends and they aren’t really mad at each other.†If you “suspend disbelief†you treat that for what it is pretending to be, two guys who hate each other guts having an argument. If you suspend disbelief you get on one side or the other. “God damn it Mick is right†or “You now what, fuck Mick Foley, BEAT HIS ASS TERRY!! Now why am I talking about this you might ask? Because I have come to the conclusion that a lot of fans, especially so called, smart fans, don’t do it anymore. Younger fans and female fans are a lot more willing to do it than older male fans, probably because of what happens as people grow older. As men get older they become very rigid in what they believe and if something doesn’t agree with it, poof out the window. But the suspension of disbelief is the whole reason to watch wrestling.

A 9 year old now a days knows that wrestling is fake, but he doesn’t care because he wants to see Randy Orton get his ass kicked because he acts like a cocky little fucking prick! He picks on old men, he hits people from behind and runs away unless he can sneak attack someone. Why wouldn’t you want to see him get his ass kicked? Because you don’t like the guy he’s wrestling. That’s fine. There have been people who have hated faces from day one. It happened with The Rock. It almost happened with Hulk Hogan a few times. I’m not saying that NO ONE who cheers for a heel suspends disbelief because I cheer heels all the time. Shit I did it last night. As soon as I saw Orton was gonna hit that fucked up neck/backbreaker he has I was like YES DO IT! Because it’s a sick ass move IMO and I love to watch it. I cheer for Morrison every time I see him because his character is so ridiculous that I have to like it. I get mad when he reads his poetry and acts like he’s the king of shit because he’s fucking annoying but I want that to happen. I want to be pissed, I want to be annoyed. That’s why I love JBL. He can make me laugh in spite of myself. And it happens all over the place in real life. Do you think only Right-Winged morons watch Bill O’Riley and read his website? Fuck no. A lot of people watch that shit because they WANT to get mad. Same thing with continually wanting to watch a heel in wrestling.

But back to the topic, I believe that if you don’t suspend disbelief, you aren’t
getting the full wrestling experience. Wrestling is supposed to be interemotional. It’s supposed to connect with the fans on a deeper level. When you watch Ric Flair vs. Randy Savage leading up until Wrestlemania VIII, if you suspended disbelief you said “God damn that Ric Flair is a motherfucking prick and I hope Randy Savage kicks his lilly white ass all over the arena.†Or something to that effect. Or you might have said “Woooooo, I cant wait to see the pictures of Liz, wooooooooo because I wanna be a kiss stealin, wheelin dealin, son of a son of a gun!†Either way, you made an emotional investment in the match and the feud. And nobody wants to fucking do that anymore and it’s fucking sickening.

I mean really, when you sit there and watch a gladiator movie and in the middle of a fight scene one guy looks at his Rolex to see what time it is. What do you say? “Oh well this fake movie had an actor who didn’t take off his watch.†Or do you go? WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS, THIS IS A GOD DAMN GLADIATOR MOVIE, WHY THE FUCK IS HE WEARING A ROLEX!?†Who do you think is more emotionally invested? And I cant for the life of me figure out why people wouldn’t want to do that. Wrestling, like movies, books, and TV is an escape. And why do we need one? Because the world is seriously fucked up. So why not go back to ancient Rome? Why not watch Harry Potter fight Voldermort? (sp?) It’s not like you are fucking up your body using drugs, alcohol, or over eating. It’s an escape into the imagination. For two hours I’m not gonna worry about anything and say “Fuck I hope I get to see Orton beat John Cena’s ass because I don’t like him.â€

Everyone is so fucking sterile now it makes me sick. People worry about “workrate†and how many moves a guy uses, quit trying to quantify everything. Your over-analyzing it and it sucks the fun out of wrestling. That’s not to say if you see something fucked up and out of place you shouldn’t call it bcause life is balance but jesus chist none of these so called “smart fans†do that. They don’t realize that this shit is this simple, you either get behind a guy, or you don’t, and that’s it. “He punched an old lady, ahahah fucking cool†or “He punched and old lady, what a god damn prick I hope someone bets his fucking ass.†You know what a smark says when that happens? “That guy who punched the old lady is trying to get heat, look at what he has lowered himself to†and that attitude pisses me right the fuckoff. They want to analyze and bullshit like that. Sit back and watch the show. If you don’t like it, turn it the fuck off and go watch something else because your whining means nothing to anyone but you and others who already agree with you.

I think you need to suspend disbelief to truly enjoy wrestling. If you notice, the ones who do don’t bitch nearly as much. Do you know what those of us who do this do when we see something that bores is, we turn it off because we are no longer invested. That’s where the investment kicks in for smarks because then they have something to whine and complain about. People are so worried now about whatever that they won’t allow themselves to suspend disbelief and they are losing out on some great fun. I will close it up by telling you about my Summerslam experience. I was in a full sports bar. About 1000 people there. Me and my friend Chaya Guerrero (no relation) were sitting having a great time. She enjoyed watching Kane beat the shit out of Finlay and booing Booker T’s pompous ass. We were yelling, counting the falls like were at the show and getting pissed when the heels took the advantage. We were having a great time. There some smart fans seated right next to me who sat there and talked the whole time. Analyzed every match and said shit like “God a midget in wrestling, how stupidâ€, “I cant believe that they are humiliating Booker T with this gimmickâ€, or “Here comes the 5-Knuckle Shuffleâ€. Stoned face. The only time they smiled is when they were talking about fucking one of the DIVA’s or laughing at the little kids cheering for John Cena. If that’s how you wanna be, fine. Enjoy it in your own way, but don’t be a fucking smug superior prick about it. You’re not smarter than anyone, especially those kids, because they know how to take something or leave something for what it is, and that’s it. They don’t sit and watch with a scorecard. They don’t critique every move, and they don’t sit there for a whole PPV and complain about the WWE’s booking style. They either watch it, or leave and go do something else. So I guess that’s how I’ll end it. Love it or leave it and SHUT THE FUCK UP!!

Its not necessary. I watch wrestling and I treat it like I would a sport. I watch the matches and I look for certain things like psychology, and decent wrestling skills. The stories are nice, and the characters definetly add spice to the show, but ultimately I wouldn't be overly upset if they stopped doing them.




I personally have never understood this line of thinking. Why get mad at a TV show? Or a movie or whatever. I dunno it just doesn't effect me on that level because that's not a priority for me when I watch shows. If they're going to put out stories, I want them to be intriguing, but I don't get emotionally invested.

See again I don't really have anything to say to this. I take an objective and emotionally detatched look at these things. The watch thing would bother me, but that has nothing to do with emotions, it would bother me because its not historically accurate.





Spoken like a true American. You don't like it, then stfu. God forbid you complain a little bit and make your voice heard. Shit man that's just not acceptable. People have different opinions and watch for different reasons always will, and when something that they truly enjoy is being turned into garbage, they fight back.


Now who's more of the fan, the person who sits back and just says "meh" and enjoys what's put in front of them, or the fan who says "Goddamn it this isn't good anymore, I want it to be better so I'm going to write letters etc, if nobody reads them then fine at least I tried doing something to change what I love"?

 

[Trips V.2]

IMO, Kaedon you make plenty of good points. I think some people do take it too far and suck the fun out of it like you. I always thought it's fun to be half and half. I love to get into matches and mark out over matches. But at the same time I find it fun to learn more about the product you love and develop opinions on the product as well. It's very interesting to debate on here and/or other forums with people who are equally interested in both sides.

There's always going to be this issue of smark vs. mark. I say we all get along and have our own own opinions and don't get angry Kaedon. Props for the nice read though. Rep to you.

 

[Kaedon]

Its not necessary. I watch wrestling and I treat it like I would a sport. I watch the matches and I look for certain things like psychology, and decent wrestling skills. The stories are nice, and the characters definetly add spice to the show, but ultimately I wouldn't be overly upset if they stopped doing them.

But you know for a fact it's not like any other sport, its not even a sport at all. So why do you treat it as such?

I personally have never understood this line of thinking. Why get mad at a TV show? Or a movie or whatever. I dunno it just doesn't effect me on that level because that's not a priority for me when I watch shows. If they're going to put out stories, I want them to be intriguing, but I don't get emotionally invested.

See again I don't really have anything to say to this. I take an objective and emotionally detatched look at these things. The watch thing would bother me, but that has nothing to do with emotions, it would bother me because its not historically accurate.

Because that is the point of movies, books, and TV. They are supposed to emotionally draw you in. If it was all dry technique, no one would connect with it. If that was the case, no one would have liked Hulk Hogan. He connected emotionally with people. He drew people in by making them "believe in him".

Spoken like a true American. You don't like it, then stfu. God forbid you complain a little bit and make your voice heard. Shit man that's just not acceptable. People have different opinions and watch for different reasons always will, and when something that they truly enjoy is being turned into garbage, they fight back.


Now who's more of the fan, the person who sits back and just says "meh" and enjoys what's put in front of them, or the fan who says "Goddamn it this isn't good anymore, I want it to be better so I'm going to write letters etc, if nobody reads them then fine at least I tried doing something to change what I love"?

There is a difference between someone who criticizes and someone who does NOTHING BUT. Look on the internet, people go to house shows and do nothing but shit all over everything. Even a match with some undercard guys they like they go "well it should have been longer" and "these guys arent being pushed enough" ALONG WITH BITCHING ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE!! What the fuck is the point of that? If you truly want to change Vince's mind, turn off the god damn TV, dont buy anything he sells and he will get "well fuck they arent buying it, lets change the shit up." But they dont want to do that they just want something to complain about. (notice I didnt say YOU, I said THEM)

 

[Flair for The Gold]

Well, again I like having a balance between both the mark, and smark in me. I like to have fun when watching wrestling, but at the same time, I think it is important to kind of run through what you like, what you don't like, and what you think should be changed. Hell, thats a lot of what goes on, in this forum.

If I were to just take what was given to me, and not find out more about the buisiness, I wouldn't have discovered a lot of wrestling that I believe is better than what is in the mainstream. Bottom line, I love having a good time when watching wrestling, but by the same token, I think I should be able to voice my disaproval when the products are slumping (which, IMO WWE and TNA are).

 

[Kaedon]

Well, again I like having a balance between both the mark, and smark in me. I like to have fun when watching wrestling, but at the same time, I think it is important to kind of run through what you like, what you don't like, and what you think should be changed. Hell, thats a lot of what goes on, in this forum.

If I were to just take what was given to me, and not find out more about the buisiness, I wouldn't have discovered a lot of wrestling that I believe is better than what is in the mainstream. Bottom line, I love having a good time when watching wrestling, but by the same token, I think I should be able to voice my disaproval when the products are slumping (which, IMO WWE and TNA are).

You dont have to take shit from the WWE. Turn it off. What do you think will get to Vince more, whining on a messageboard or hundreds of thousands of TVs turning off?

 

[Flair for The Gold]

You dont have to take shit from the WWE. Turn it off. What do you think will get to Vince more, whining on a messageboard or hundreds of thousands of TVs turning off?

Well, I understand what your saying, but I'll always watch Raw and ECW (not SD because of the fri. night time slot), because not all of its bad of course, and it IS free wrestling on TV, so why not? It could always get better.

On the other hand, I give neither WWE nor TNA any of my money. I don't buy PPV's or any merchandise of theirs, so I think its a fair compromise.

 

[the dark knight]

:gun_rifle:

thats what i've been thinking about! the more you talk about wrestling, the more you remember it as being fake, the more you're gonna hate it. people discuss everything now as if they're the creative staff.

one of the reasons i hate spoilers...how would you watch star wars or whatever movie you're gonna watch after looking through everything thats gonna happen and knowing the ending? what do you expect douchebag? ofcourse the show's gonna suck. you already spoiled it! whats the point of watching thing and wanting to enjoy it if your ass it itching to read everything about it before watching it? i say SHUT DOWN THE SPOILER SECTION FROM HERE. wrestling was never the same to me after i started to read wrestling news and stuff. even if someone got fired or something, i used to wonder where'd he go from the show and have suspense which is better than to just let an idea go away from watching the show.

at summerslam, like kaedon, i counted the pinfall of triple h's match lol. also, i yelled and screamed while watching kane's match which i think was one of the best. i really got confused about who's gonna win...

anyway, when you watch a movie, you try to get connected to it like kaedon said. you're never gonna enjoy a movie if you keep saying oh shit, thats fake. thats stupid..no: i once punched my friend when i was watching one of arnold's movies with him when he kept saying "what a load of crap". sit down, believe what you're watching and look forward to the next show. it helps...


oh yea, about cena. i still dont like the guy and i did think that the WWE could've done better in the last 2 years. did i stop watching? maybe not yet.

PS i dont hate cena now and i find him entertaining. and i was happy to see him win the match at summerslam after so wanting him to lose the title. i find his role fitting now and no need for a title change RIGHT NOW.

:gun_rifle: