Post by Turnbuckle Zealot(Phil) on Nov 30, 2013 15:47:42 GMT -5
The discussion of who is the "Greatest of all time" has been a debate in every subject of human endeavor ever since it could.
However, the attempts to advocate one individual or group over an other are often hopelessly bias, & ignorant to the criteria that qualifies a practitioner of the craft to be considered great. Professional wrestling is by no means an exception to this unwritten law of human perception.
The most logical & reasonable definition of being the greatest(at least in our genre) is to be the best overall in every facet of the craft. To have proven the highest level of skill as it relates to every skill required to perform the task properly.
For example: If a practice has ten required skills needed to perform it, & these skills are judged on scales of one to ten, a practitioner with a rank of 7 across all ten skills will be superior to someone with four 10s, five 5s, & one 2.
The scores would be 70 to 67.
Therefore, Wrestler A is better overall against Wrestler B.
A more concrete example:
Wrestler A scores the following over the ten skills: 6,6,7,7,7,8,7,7,6,8 = 69
Wrestler B scores:
4,6,5,10,10,10,9,2,4,3 = 63
So even though Wrestler B has achieved the highest possible level of excellent in three skill-sets while Wrestler A had achieved none, Wrestler B had far more glaring weaknesses throughout his repertoire, therefore Wrestler A is the superior of the two.
There is also a matter of deciphering the rank of value that each skill possesses as being necessary to the craft.
Which skills are the foundation upon which all other facets are built?
The following list is a congregation of the skills most heavily emphasized as the jobs of each & every wrestler by the greats of the genre. I will list them in no particular order.
#1: Making your wrestling matches believable.
The whole point of the business is to convince people they are watching a real athletic contest/showdown of rivals etc. If they don't believe your performance, then they won't be impressed or feel empathy or anything outside of ridicule for that matter. So it stands to reason that convincing your audience is paramount as a wrestling performer.
This leads us to following question "How does one make their match believable?" which brings me to the following qualities.
#2: Technical Fluidity.
You could easily make a match appear realistic by having the participants genuinely beat each-other's skulls in, but that wouldn't exactly be good for business.
The whole reason for having staged matches in the first place was to protect talent & still give the crowds the sport & spectacle they were craving.
In order to do this, you must apply your various techniques in a way that minimizes damage to your fellow participants, while still creating the illusion of pain.
This requires precise, concentrated, fluid movement throughout the match when both using holds & having attacks applied on you.
"How does one create the illusion of pain?" is the subsequent question in hand. The answer, as most anyone on this forum knows, is the proverbially ancient(And often misunderstood) art of "Selling".
Selling is the conveyance of a wrestler's bodily & mental reaction to the contact of his opponent's maneuvers. Those responses range from pain, anguish, disorientation, anger, humor, motivation & so on, in a varying range of intensities.
It is the nuts, bolts, screws, & nails the hold the entire performance together. Therefore, it is among the three most necessary aspects of the game.
There are several upon several aspects of being a skilled Professional Wrestler, so please post your thoughts on the invaluable, over/underrated, or lost arts of portraying wrestling matches, & any thoughts you have on how to define skill & aptitude in dramatic art-forms, & what it really means to be an "All rounder" in Professional Wrestling.
However, the attempts to advocate one individual or group over an other are often hopelessly bias, & ignorant to the criteria that qualifies a practitioner of the craft to be considered great. Professional wrestling is by no means an exception to this unwritten law of human perception.
The most logical & reasonable definition of being the greatest(at least in our genre) is to be the best overall in every facet of the craft. To have proven the highest level of skill as it relates to every skill required to perform the task properly.
For example: If a practice has ten required skills needed to perform it, & these skills are judged on scales of one to ten, a practitioner with a rank of 7 across all ten skills will be superior to someone with four 10s, five 5s, & one 2.
The scores would be 70 to 67.
Therefore, Wrestler A is better overall against Wrestler B.
A more concrete example:
Wrestler A scores the following over the ten skills: 6,6,7,7,7,8,7,7,6,8 = 69
Wrestler B scores:
4,6,5,10,10,10,9,2,4,3 = 63
So even though Wrestler B has achieved the highest possible level of excellent in three skill-sets while Wrestler A had achieved none, Wrestler B had far more glaring weaknesses throughout his repertoire, therefore Wrestler A is the superior of the two.
There is also a matter of deciphering the rank of value that each skill possesses as being necessary to the craft.
Which skills are the foundation upon which all other facets are built?
The following list is a congregation of the skills most heavily emphasized as the jobs of each & every wrestler by the greats of the genre. I will list them in no particular order.
#1: Making your wrestling matches believable.
The whole point of the business is to convince people they are watching a real athletic contest/showdown of rivals etc. If they don't believe your performance, then they won't be impressed or feel empathy or anything outside of ridicule for that matter. So it stands to reason that convincing your audience is paramount as a wrestling performer.
This leads us to following question "How does one make their match believable?" which brings me to the following qualities.
#2: Technical Fluidity.
You could easily make a match appear realistic by having the participants genuinely beat each-other's skulls in, but that wouldn't exactly be good for business.
The whole reason for having staged matches in the first place was to protect talent & still give the crowds the sport & spectacle they were craving.
In order to do this, you must apply your various techniques in a way that minimizes damage to your fellow participants, while still creating the illusion of pain.
This requires precise, concentrated, fluid movement throughout the match when both using holds & having attacks applied on you.
"How does one create the illusion of pain?" is the subsequent question in hand. The answer, as most anyone on this forum knows, is the proverbially ancient(And often misunderstood) art of "Selling".
Selling is the conveyance of a wrestler's bodily & mental reaction to the contact of his opponent's maneuvers. Those responses range from pain, anguish, disorientation, anger, humor, motivation & so on, in a varying range of intensities.
It is the nuts, bolts, screws, & nails the hold the entire performance together. Therefore, it is among the three most necessary aspects of the game.
There are several upon several aspects of being a skilled Professional Wrestler, so please post your thoughts on the invaluable, over/underrated, or lost arts of portraying wrestling matches, & any thoughts you have on how to define skill & aptitude in dramatic art-forms, & what it really means to be an "All rounder" in Professional Wrestling.