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Is WWE Real or Fake? Debunking the World's Most Controversial Question
Is WWE Real or Fake? Debunking the World's Most Contr...
By Edcel Panganiban September 10, 2024 06:52
For over a half-century, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) has been the golden standard in sports entertainment across the globe. More than just another drama on television, the show presented behemoth-like figures and luminous personas with top-speed action meshed throughout. To understand what makes WWE what it is, you must talk about an extensive history dating back almost a century, including athletes who compete in the ring using superhuman abilities and undergo hair-raising production methods.
Historical Context
WWE was founded in the early 20th century as a professional wrestling promotion in North America. At first, wrestling was portrayed as a competitive sport, with matches often being unscripted and unpredictable. Promoters instead felt that there was entertainment value in having scripted matches and more elaborate storylines.
Founded in 1963 as the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) by Vince McMahon Sr., it underwent various changes and was renamed the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), then WWE. WWE, led by Vince McMahon Jr., changed the game and effectively invented "sports entertainment," reducing wrestling to another type of showbiz spectacle.
Professional Wrestling
At its heart, WWE is scripted entertainment. Matches are scripted and predetermined, so creative managers can play a role similar to Hollywood screenwriters, telling complex stories that capture the audience. Being scripted means that WWE can tell better stories involving heroes' faces and villains' heels, fighting in the ultimate showdowns of good overcoming evil.
Even though it is scripted, WWE performers or "Superstars" must be excellent athletes. Matches feature a complex sequence of moves that take advantage of setting up opponent finishing moves, precise timing, and wrestlers working in unison. The performers must also act well enough to convey stress, heartache, and general drama, which play a key factor in highlighting the storytelling of the show.
Athleticism and Training
WWE Superstars are subjected to grueling punishment of their bodies. Week in and week out, these wrestlers are on a never-ending treadmill of major performances that requires them to be in peak performance shape at all times. Training will consist of strength and conditioning, fundamental technical wrestling, and character development.
Taking bumps is a dangerous job in general, as WWE has its wrestlers perform many high-impact moves that still require physical contact with others. Because wrestling is a brutal form of entertainment, these wrestlers must stay in top physical shape to perform their moves without injury and entertain the crowd.
Public Perception
Seasoned fans also enjoy skilled storytelling within an athletic context, where there can be no doubt that those who perform these physical feats pay for doing so, as do individuals in legitimately competitive sports. Critics of WWE and other wrestling companies too often use the term "fake" to simply write off programs without mentioning or crediting any kind of effort or athleticism in their preparation.
Behind the Scenes Insights
WWE is a complex operation with writers, producers, and creative directors. The storylines are fleshed out months before the new season of Raw begins with input from wrestlers and writers who lay everything down in conjunction with key executives.
The creative team is licensed to shape characters and storylines, pulling from real-life stories, pop culture like failed businessmen, or historical wrestling feuds. Together, this process ensures that WWE stays on the path to relevance, allowing it to grow and develop to keep up with its various fans.
The question as to whether wrestling (WWE) is real or fake feeds into a much wider debate. The matches are fake, but the athleticism and creativity put into every minute of them are real. WWE occupies a special space in the entertainment world, part sport, part storytelling, and the combination has resonated with people everywhere.
At the end of the day, whether or not WWE is real wrestling in terms of its punches and snap mares isn't what matters so much as whether it's fun to watch. For many of its fans, WWE provides a magically hypnotic recess into a land of drama, action, and pageantry, unlike most other places. Even the greyest lines between reality and fiction squiggle around like drool on an infant's lips in some truly fantastic ways.
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