Rant #1,540: Another World

I have not written about professional wrestling in quite a while, so today, in the midst of the start of baseball's World Series, the beginning of the NBA season, and the continuance of the NHL and NFL seasons, this is the sport I am going to write about today.

And yes, it is a sport, but it is really equal parts sports and entertainment, which makes it somewhat different than the other "real" sports, but not THAT much different.

The other sports used to be about pure athleticism. Now, it is about three quarters athleticism and one quarter entertainment, and that percentage is changing all the time.

Anyway, the WWE--the top wrestling organization in the world--has created its own universe with its own set of rules. Millions of people buy into this universe, and if you do, fine, if not, that is fine, too.

The WWE is coming off a good pay-per-view show, "Hell In a Cell," which isn't really a pure pay-per-view show anymore, as it is available that way, but most viewers watch it through their subscription to the highly successful WWE Network. All payer-view events run by the WWE are like this now.

Boy, the naysayers were out on that network when it started a few years back, saying that it could not work as sort of a Netflix of pro wrestling, but millions of subscribers around the world will tell you just how wrong that prognostication was.

Anyway, back to "Hell In a Cell" ...

The show featured the Undertaker vs. Brock Lesner, which to wrestling is sort of like the 1927 Yankees going against the 1961 Yankees, the best of the sport vs. the best of the sport, at least in current terms.

It was held in a cage, yet, and there was blood, but when all was said and done, Lesnar came out bloody, but victorious.

Anyway, the WWE heavyweight champion, Seth Rollins, also won his bout versus Kane, and there were several other good matches, including one that brought back Alberto Del Rio into the fold (another story for another time).

Anyway, on last night's Raw episode, winners of the matches from the pay-per-view show--less the woman's match winner--fought in what they call a "Fatal Four Way"--which is pretty much self explanatory--to determine who would be the No. 1 contender to Rollins' heavyweight belt.

Roman Reigns came out the winner, so at some future date, he will undoubtedly face his former partner for that cherished belt.

Reigns and Rollins were part of "The Shield," one of the most popular groups of wrestlers ever. The threesome--including Dean Ambrose--took the WWE by storm a few years back, first as villains and later as babyface good guys.

They were young, they were brash, and they had that look that the WWE loves, so each member of The Shield has gone onto some measure of success, both as a member of that group and as a solo.

The storyline has been that Rollins won the championship belt with the backing of Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, who currently run the WWE as "The Authority." The real life husband and wife--who do, in fact, run the WWE besides Stephanie's dad, Vince McMahon--have done everything in their power to keep Rollins at the top spot, but he does have to keep wrestling worthy opponents to keep the belt.

Now we have Roman Reigns, in real life part of the Samoan-American wrestling family that has had many wrestlers on the WWE roster for generations, including Dwayne Johnson, better known as The Rock in wrestling circles.

Reigns--The Rock's cousin-- has now been deemed ready to grab this title belt, and the word is that he will do so, sometime in the near future.

Sure, the matches are set up, the outcome is predetermined, and any schooled wrestling observer--from age nine to 99--pretty well knows what is going to happen, but watching it all unfold is where the fun is.

And the WWE is fun right now, because it has been somewhat rejuvenated by Ms. McMahon and Triple H--real name Paul Levesque--the young'uns who have injected a bit of youthful enthusiasm into the proceedings.

Vince McMahon, in his 70s, simply can't do this anymore, having a connection with the youthful audience that the WWE needs to keep it going. So although he still technically runs the show, his daughter and Triple H are the ones making the major decisions, and they have made themselves the quintessential heels, and have shaped the organization to continue to celebrate its past while looking to the future.

Mr. McMahon simply can't so that with the current audience. His successors, his real life daughter and son in law, have shown that they can.

So yes, pro wrestling is a farce, and that is the way it is supposed to be.

But don't put it down that much, because it is incredibly successful, very well done, and puts out hours of original programming each week that can only be compared to the output that the few soap operas still on the air put out.

And much of it is live programming, where everything and anything can happen, and often does.

So just sit back and relax, and the let the wrestlers--yes, they are both athletes and entertainers--do their thing.

But as the warning goes, don't do what they do at home.

No body slams, no suplexes, no sleeper holds at home.

All that you are required to do is sit back in your easy chair and take it all in.