Media Pre-heel Colby interview from 2015

[DivineMind]

That is the proper term for someone who puts on an unsympathetic persona in the ring.

What would you call it ?

Proper term? You mean pro-wrestling term.

I'd say he plays the villain. Bad guy. Scoundrel. Offensive. Vulgar. Pick one of the million words in the english language that already exists.

 

[DivineMind]

It's the right term, and for precisely that reason.

Colby is tapping into the same energy that drives fake fighting. He understands the dramatic theater of the fight game. Any fighter who isn't an idiot would study pro wrestling personalities, and the dynamic of narratives that are constantly revisited in that business. I'm not a pro wrestling fan, or at least I haven't been since Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior were tag-teaming when I was a kid, but anyone has to respect an entertainment industry that sells out the largest stadiums in the world with a staged product.

There is tremendous power in that, and the fighters with the best remembered legacies tend to tap into that. Ali wouldn't have been Ali if he didn't understand it. Tyson wasn't a studied pupil of it, but his natural character was larger than life, large enough to fit the mold, and that's one of the major reasons he is remembered so disproportionately to his legacy. Chael Sonnen grasped it. Conor understands it.

Colby is a student of this theater. Kudos to him for flexing the muscle between his ears. That's a weapon, too.

You can just say he's playing a villainous persona for attention. This is hardly specific to pro-wrestling. It's been done before, in any type of entertainment. "The bad guy" is such a cliche at this point.

The use of a word, "heel", tied to pro-wrestling is just a sign that you still enjoy watching something that you should have outgrown once you hit age 12.

 

[blaseblah]

That is the proper term for someone who puts on an unsympathetic persona in the ring.

What would you call it ?

Also why hate people who enjoy WWE wrestling, it is entertainment similar to everything else. A Hollywood movies you watch are also fake but you still enjoy the fake movie.

People watch movies to see good acting. Not bad acting by shirtless dudes in spandex.

 

[COBRA03]

If he was still like this, I might actually like him more. Just a little more.

 

[RedDevilFan]

That is the proper term for someone who puts on an unsympathetic persona in the ring.

What would you call it ?

A

Proper term? You mean pro-wrestling term.

I'd say he plays the villain. Bad guy. Scoundrel. Offensive. Vulgar. Pick one of the million words in the english language that already exists.

Yeah but Villain does not properly describe the character he plays. Villain connotes mean/evil, Colby is playing a character and one not necessarily evil or mean.

The term is fine.

 

[RedDevilFan]

People watch movies to see good acting. Not bad acting by shirtless dudes in spandex.

I don’t watch WWE but some people do and it is a form of entertainment just like a big screen movie. Both are fake but it’s just the type of entertainment you prefer.

 

[chinarice]

Wrestling, no. Pretend wrestling, not necessarily, if you're 10 years old.

I feel the same way about anyone who watches cartoons and movies. They're ok to like if you're 10 years old but why would you watch it after that, knowing it's all fake?

 

[Madmick]

You can just say he's playing a villainous persona for attention. This is hardly specific to pro-wrestling. It's been done before, in any type of entertainment. "The bad guy" is such a cliche at this point.

The use of a word, "heel", tied to pro-wrestling is just a sign that you still enjoy watching something that you should have outgrown once you hit age 12.

Except the persona he is playing isn't the "bad guy" or "villain" depending on your perspective. That's what you're missing. He's latching onto a lifestyle that many young men want to live, but they can't, and so it inspires envy. He's rolling that up into a political mindset which triggers only about half the country. The rest find it heroic.

The people who find this villainous disproportionately belong to a lower socioeconomic class, and also a younger demographic. He's deliberately trolling a specific portion of the fan base, and in the fight game, this happens to be a disproportionate portion of the fan base.

When I was a kid two of the "heels" were Ted The Millionaire Man Dubasi and Big Boss Man. Two great examples. One represented the out of touch, callous, wealthy elites. The other represented the authority of the state. Is being wealthy a crime? No. Are policemen "villains"? Certainly not, but they're not liked by everyone, and disproportionately resented by certain groups. Wrestling taps into that energy. They foment it, stir it, manipulate it, redirect it, release it, and ultimately profit off it. It's all quite symbolic, and notice the power of symbols in that theater: Ted's tuxedo, Boss Man's blue uniform, and Colby's...red hat.

It's a form of theater that is something of a gas valve for social or political friction. No, it's not opera or ballet, but it isn't made for the people who attend operas and ballets. Just because it's less sophisticated doesn't render it less significant, and it's complex enough that these truths elude many-- including, it seems, yourself.

 

[DivineMind]

I feel the same way about anyone who watches cartoons and movies. They're ok to like if you're 10 years old but why would you watch it after that, knowing it's all fake?

HAhahahahaha.

Yes, yes, arguably, pro-wrestling takes the form of a play, so you could also think of it as "high art"!

... until you remember you're looking at oiled up, juiced up men and women wearing spandex, throwing each other around a ring, reciting the cheesiest dialogue you could ever imagine.

At least in good movies, the drama seems realistic. Nothing about pro-wrestling makes any sense to anyone with an IQ above 80.

 

[DivineMind]

Except the persona he is playing isn't the "bad guy" or "villain" depending on your perspective. That's what you're missing. He's latching onto a lifestyle that many young men want to live, but they can't, and so it inspires envy. He's rolling that up into a political mindset which triggers only about half the country. The rest find it heroic.

The people who find this villainous disproportionately belong to a lower socioeconomic class, and also a younger demographic. He's deliberately trolling a specific portion of the fan base, and in the fight game, this happens to be a disproportionate portion of the fan base.

When I was a kid two of the "heels" were Ted The Millionaire Man Dubasi and Big Boss Man. Two great examples. One represented the out of touch, callous, wealthy elites. The other represented the authority of the state. Is being wealthy a crime? No. Are policemen "villains"? Certainly not, but they're not liked by everyone, and disproportionately resented by certain groups. Wrestling taps into that energy. They foment it, stir it, manipulate it, redirect it, release it, and ultimately profit off it. It's all quite symbolic, and notice the power of these symbols in that theater: Ted's tuxedo, Boss Man's blue uniform, and Colby's...red hat.

It's a form of theater that is something of a gas valve for social or political friction. No, it's not opera or ballet, but it isn't made for the people who attend operas and ballets. Just because it's less sophisticated doesn't render it less significant, and it's complex enough that these truths elude many-- including, it seems, yourself.

I think you're missing my point. I get what he's doing. And I get that what he's doing is similar to what pro-wrestlers do.

But your use of the word "heel" in that way is a CHOICE. It means you're either a pro-wrestling fan or you're making a choice to succumb to the influence of pro-wrestling fans.

There are other words to use. You could say he deliberately provokes tensions. ANYTHING else. FIGHT BAck.

 

[chinarice]

HAhahahahaha.

Yes, yes, arguably, pro-wrestling takes the form of a play, so you could also think of it as "high art"!

... until you remember you're looking at oiled up, juiced up men and women wearing spandex, throwing each other around a ring, reciting the cheesiest dialogue you could ever imagine.

At least in good movies, the drama seems realistic. Nothing about pro-wrestling makes any sense to anyone with an IQ above 80.

Your 2nd paragraph also is literally amateur wrestling but generally looks far more homosexual.

Tons of shit in most movies is unrealistic... I think you still wanna believe though lol

Pro wrestlers dont get the benefit of redoing their line they fuck up. They just deal with it.

Pro wrestling is lame, a lot of the time, no question. You trying to tell people what they should and should not be entertained by is some silly shit though.

 

[DivineMind]

Your 2nd paragraph also is literally amateur wrestling but generally looks far more homosexual.

Tons of shit in most movies is unrealistic... I think you still wanna believe though lol

Pro wrestlers dont get the benefit of redoing their line they fuck up. They just deal with it.

Pro wrestling is lame, a lot of the time, no question. You trying to tell people what they should and should not be entertained by is some silly shit though.

No I'm not trying to convince anyone. It's good that you take pro-wrestling being lame as a given.

And in good movies, it could be about aliens for all that matters, but that drama is realistic given the situation.

Pro-wrestlers just jibber jabber some nonsense and pretend to be mad at eachother before slamming eachothers' heads into the turnbuckle.

LOL

 

[Senzo Tanaka]

Why do people use the word "heel" like that? Are you fools all pro-wrestling fans?

The mom in Home Alone even said "don't you feel like a heel flying first class?". The term has transcended wrestling.

 

[DivineMind]

The mom in Home Alone even said "don't you feel like a heel flying first class?". The term has transcended wrestling.

There is a dated usage of the word that means : "an inconsiderate or untrustworthy person.". The pro-wrestling term means a deliberately mean or unsympathetic person. Both have negative connotations, but are different. The home alone usage as you describe seems more similar to the non-pro-wrestling definition.

 

[HadoukenHendo]

It's kind of weird for an adult to be into that

It's kind of weird for an adult to be invested in movies, as they're fake..

It's entertainment, and a wrestlers schedule is the most brutal schedule out of any other athlete in any industry.. The outcomes are staged, the bumps are real..

imagine being such a pseudo-macho-man that you're unwilling to accept professional wrestling as fun for people of all ages, all because the outcome is scripted? only real violence for you huh? Maybe you shouldn't watch any more films.. ever again..

you're an adult, and this is your level of critical thinking? you're an adult? LOL

 

[HadoukenHendo]

People watch movies to see good acting. Not bad acting by shirtless dudes in spandex.

People watch movies to see good acting? not to be entertained? who the fuck are you to tell others why they go and see movies?

 

[Squintz]

Too much eyeliner

 

[DivineMind]

It's kind of weird for an adult to be invested in movies, as they're fake..

It's entertainment, and a wrestlers schedule is the most brutal schedule out of any other athlete in any industry.. The outcomes are staged, the bumps are real..

imagine being such a pseudo-macho-man that you're unwilling to accept professional wrestling as fun for people of all ages, all because the outcome is scripted? only real violence for you huh? Maybe you shouldn't watch any more films.. ever again..

you're an adult, and this is your level of critical thinking? you're an adult? LOL

Bruh, it's not the staged outcome that is the main thing wrong, the level of dialogue is so inane it's cringeworthy.

There is literally 0 basis for believing any of the schlock that is spewed from their mouths, on any level.

The acting and drama is on par with porn. It's like: "Ok, let's just say some random shit before I [reverse cowgirl your ass]."

Except for pro-wrestling its, : "Ok, let's just say some random shit before I [slam your head into a turnbuckle]."

LOL.

Yes, that's right. Pro-wrestling is the soft-core porn of the combat sports world.

 

[HadoukenHendo]

No I'm not trying to convince anyone. It's good that you take pro-wrestling being lame as a given.

And in good movies, it could be about aliens for all that matters, but that drama is realistic given the situation.

Pro-wrestlers just jibber jabber some nonsense and pretend to be mad at eachother before slamming eachothers' heads into the turnbuckle.

LOL

They create storylines designed to make people invested in them..

The same way directors of movies create stories that will make people invested..

The two are exactly the same, yes they're not actors.. They're telling stories with their bodies, albeit you've already outed yourself as a pseudo intellectual, yeah anyone with an iq below 80 could like professional wrestling, anything over not so much.. Who are you to decide what people get enjoyment from? People are entertained by whatever they're entertained by... be it bad acting with high risk stunt work, or good acting with stuntmen (films)


I've competed in martial arts, and I can still get enjoyment from professional wrestling (although I no longer watch it) some clips make me fucking laugh bad, like that big idiot falling under the ring in the royal rumble..

soemthing isn't to your liking therefore everyone who likes it is sub 80 iq.. imagine being this dumb.. only a sith deals in absolutes..

 

[HadoukenHendo]

Bruh, it's not the staged outcome that is the main thing wrong, the level of dialogue is so inane it's cringeworthy.

There is literally 0 basis for believing any of the schlock that is spewed from their mouths, on any level.

The acting and drama is on par with porn. It's like: "Ok, let's just say some random shit before I [reverse cowgirl your ass]."

Except for pro-wrestling its, : "Ok, let's just say some random shit before I [slam your head into a turnbuckle]."

LOL.

Yes, that's right. Pro-wrestling is the soft-core porn of the combat sports world.

Largely agree, the PC scripted wrestling today is nothing like the wrestling industry in the late 90s. the promos are scripted, take a look at some non scripted promos and tell me it's bad dialogue..



can't believe i'm sitting defending pro wrestling. fuck you divine