Bad experiences introducing people to wrestling

[Guest Fook]

This happened to me twice.

 

The first time was in 1999 when wrestling was at its most popular. One guy in my circle of friends had never watched wrestling, so the rest of us got him to watch raw with all of us one night.

 

Just our luck, it happened to be the night of the higher power angle. My friend took one look at it and said "This is the stupidest shit ever. I can't follow this." He hasn't watched wrestling since.

 

The second time was even worse. In my first year of university (2002), I was the only one on my floor who watched wrestling and I got criticized for it. I told everyone I watched for the matches and not for the stupid angles or women in underwear. I managed to convince some of them (guys and girls) to sit down and watch raw with me one night. Unfortunately, it was the raw where Bischoff introduced Hot Lesbian Action. You can imagine how well that went over.

 

Wait, it gets worse.

 

About a month later, I was watching raw in the common room and other people came in. They decided to stick around and watch for a bit as they didn't have anything better to do than mock what I was watching. I was hoping that wwe would actually put out a good show so I could say "See? THAT's why I watch!" But it was not to be. Instead, I get the opposite - Katie Vick! Corpse fucking! Necrophilia! Needless to say, that's not the best thing to show someone if you want them to watch wrestling.

 

 

Anything like this ever happen to anyone else?

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

It usually goes poorly for me too. The WWF usually puts on their worst efforts when I'm trying to get someone else to watch with me.

 

A lot of Vince acting out his sexual fantasies on the air.

[Youth N Asia 0]

I was watching Nitro and taping RAW. I would go back and forth with that.

 

Anyway, my friend comes over and I convince him to sit down and give it a shot...then something I thought I'd never see...that little shit Chucky doll comes out and cuts a promo on Rick Steiner. I think I just kept sinking lower in my seat then. I of course explained that WWF was the better show. And to which his reply was "Um, yeah, I bet."

[Placebo Effect 0]

Thankfully, the only time I tried to show someone a live broadcast of any show was the Raw many years ago when Austin was scheduled to fight McMahon with one hand tied behind his back. Pretty damn steady Raw, and the person who watched it liked it enough to occasionally tune into WCW until its demise.

[CanadianChick 0]

My mom and dad go to a bar (sounds like the start of a bad joke, huh?) and it so happens that Smackdown is on. So what's on? Why Torrie Wilson and Dawn Marie catfighting at Al Wilson's funeral! My mom asks me "This is what you watch? It's like a third-rate soap opera."

[EdwardKnoxII 0]

This one is kinda different. This happened in '98-99 one of my friends was a really big WWF mark and he hated WCW mainly cause it was the "cool" thing to hate. When I asked him why he'd give some dumb BS, half ass excuses but, of course, he never really watched WCW. So, I tired to show him that WCW does have great wrestling.

 

So, one Monday night on the hour before RAW started there was a tag match with Benoit and Dean and I forget who they were facing. Anyways, I called my friend and told him to turn into TNT to watch the match.

 

My friend was freaking out that Benoit and Dean these "little guys" as he likes to call them were using "big guy" moves like powerbombs, slams, and piledrivers. And was mad at them for doing it and yelling for them to stop using them. No joke.

 

Yeah he was into the big guys and thought "little guys" like the Hardy Boys and Xitan sucked cause they were "little" it had nothing to do with their skill just there size. I so wanted to hit him.

[caboose 0]

My story starts well but ends badly...

 

My dad used to be a wrestling back in the early 80's, he'd got to the local coliseum and watch the old English stars like Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks. And when I had originally got into Wrestling it was when my dad had taken me to a show held long after the English Wrestling scene had been almost killed by the WWF's popularity. Soon after this I got into WCW and my dad laughed at its comic nature and lost interest in Wrestling.

 

In early 2000 when wrestling hits its big mainstream fad period over here, my dad decided to see what all the hype about The Rock was. He sat and watched the famous 5 man tag from early 2000. He was entralled. My dad got really into it and I will always remember his face when Vince hit Rocky with the chair at WrestleMania 2000. He was more shocked than I was. He'd never seen a heel go over on such a big stage. It really got him into it, but after I started 6th Form College, I spent a lot more Friday and Saturday nights out, (when RAW & Smackdown are shown in England). Without his son to change the channel to the wrestling every week, my dad lost interest. One day in 2002, I was home watching a tape of Backlash 2002, my dad walks in during the Triple H-Hogan Title match. He sits down and watches it with me. As Hogan wins the title, my dad gets up and asks me if I honestly believe Hogan could still beat up Triple H. I replied 'no'. At which point he pointed out, 'They should at least make it realistic!'.

 

He's never watched since.

[Guest Jimbo]

A few days after Wrestlemania 18, I finally got a taped version and sat down to watch it when some of my friends came in and thought they'd watch it to.

 

Now, some people say that WM18 with Hogan/Rock and the rest was a decent show, and I'd tend to agree.

 

However, trying to show observers who had never watched wrestling before (beyond one Royal Rumble, which they thought was cool, and the gimmick battle royale some other time, which they thought was hillarious) and knew little of it's history, the ppv sucked.

 

For example, to get into Rock/Hogan...you gotta understand who they are, be a mark, cheering for one of them in the dream match, etc.

 

....people who know zilch about those men, will quickly realize what any other wrestlign fan who watches that epic match with the volume turned down....

 

IT IS HORRIBLEY BORING!!!!

 

The appeal of that match was the crowd and the fact that two legends were meetings--not the actual match itself, IMO.

 

So, they wree bored as hell, hated it all, and thus, haven't watched wrestling much since.

 

But, if you really want to make someon a wrestling fan, take them to an indy wrestling show...it will convert them instantly. My father, who has despised wrestling all his life, was really into all the RoH shows he's went to with I and has even made room for future ones in our area so that he can go because he is completely awestuck by some of the moves done.

 

There is something about the enviorment that will make you a fan.

 

My dad won't sit down and watch any tapes--even RoH ones from shows he loved! There is something about the experience that will make anyone love it.

 

(assuming it's a good show, which most RoH ones are)

[Mecha Mummy 0]

I tend to be incredibly careful with what I show people who don't watch wrestling. Generally my friends enjoy Toryumon, especially the comedy matches, because the gimmicks are out there, the workers are entertaining and charismatic, and some of the moves, like the ones Dragon Kid pulls off, are pretty spectacular.

 

However, one time, my dad, who absolutely loathes wrestling but when I last talked to him (we haven't spoken in months), he had pretty much accepted that I like it and teased me about it from time to time.

 

However, he was channelsurfing, and he stopped on WWE once while I was around; it was La Resistance coming out. I could only shake my head.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

Generally speaking, I'm pretty successful. But one time I failed miserably. It was in September 1999, my first year at university and we had a shared TV lounge, and it was my job to convince the people there that RAW was worth watching. The show it ended up being was the night of 'This is Your Life, Rock', and needless to say, after that it was the end of watching RAW in its regular timeslot. Although, I at least got my roommate interested in it again (for the first time since Wrestlemania VI) after showing him Royal Rumble 2000. I noticed that throughout 2000 it was much easier than normal to get people into the product.

 

Watching 'This is Your Life, Rock' was the one and only time I was ever embarrassed to be a wrestling fan. I just couldn't defend the segment at all, considering the calibre of the players involved (Rock, Mick, HHH) and the length of time it got to do absolutely nothing to put over the in-ring product.

[Guest M. Harry Smilac]

My mom walked by when I was watching the vince knelt down in the ring "chosen one" spotlight on him segment on smackdown before ss03 and said "He likes to overract doesn't he"

 

Not really introducing but my bro was an old wcw nwo days mark who hasn't watched faithfully in forever and he was watching the wm20 3 way with me and just becoming immensely giddy over Shawn's and HHH's blade jobs.He also really liked the match too.

[DCMaximo 0]

Sometimes though, it doesn't matter how good the matches are. When I was at university last year in Swansea, the Royal Rumble was coming on, so me and my housemate Jack, the only other wrestling fan in our house decided to watch it. To convince the others to allow this, we held a sweepstake on the Rumble so even the non-wrestling fans would watch in hope of winning some money. The show starts, everyone enjoys Show vs Lesnar, as they are impressed at Lesnar's strength. Shockingly they all enjoy HHH vs Steiner, for reasons I cannot fathom. Then, during Benoit vs Angle, where I was sat on the edge of my seat for the entire match, they were getting really bored, complaining and generally being pissed off. Sometimes, the utter tat goes down best.

 

Of course, I did get to play upon their ignorance during the sweepstake picks- "Yes, yes Bill DeMott is a GREAT pick. I reckon he could win it this year..."

[Just John 0]

I've got a pretty bad one:

 

Friend: Why do yo watch wrestling? It's so gay.

 

Me: Come on. Don't knock it until you actually watch a complete show.

 

Friend: Maybe. When does it come on?

 

Me: Tonight. 8:00 on TNN, channel 49.

 

*Freind watches Raw. Unfortunately, it's the one where HHH makes the Katie Vick announcement, implying Kane raped her.

 

Next Day:

 

Friend: That was disturbing and stupid. I'm never going to watch again.

 

Me: Alright, I know that wasn't the best show. Don't worry. Kane and HHH have a ppv match this Sunday to end their feud. Just watch next week. I promise you won't see any shit like that again.

 

Boy, was I wrong. The rest is pretty much self-explanatory. He still makes fun of Katie Vick today.

[JoeDirt 0]

I sat down and watched RAW with my girlfriend for the first time, and that was the show Kane set JR on fire.

 

Ugggh.

[Guest JebusNassedar]

I have a story similar to JoeDirts, only it wasn't an actual relationship (she's already engaged to someone else). So, she camped out on the couch with me, and watched Raw one night, because she was curious about my pro-wres love. So what came on?

 

 

I'm yet to live it down.

[Just John 0]

So I was watching a Thanksgiving SD once, while enduring criticism from my grandma and aunt about wrestling. I tried to dispell all of the stereotypical arguments used against wrestling (it's fake, trashy, etc), but the next match shot my case in the leg.

 

Torrie vs. Stacy in a gravy bowl