Why I Love Wrestling 6.17.07: The Great Escape

Posted by Jordan Linkous on 06.17.2007

This week I look at the best escape since booze, wrestling! Or you can combine them!

Hello and welcome back to another edition of Why I Love Wrestling. I had a fabulous week and I only have one more week of school left. I actually received some feedback, so I'll get to that at the end. This week's column focuses on wrestling as a way out, so to speak. Let us begin.

The Great Escape

When I'm feeling blue, there is nothing I would rather do than just relax with some wrestling. Well, I would go out on a date with Jessica Biel and Jessica Alba simultaneously, but that won't happen. Realistically, wrestling is pretty good. It is just a way to escape. Whether it is a good DVD, a well-written article, or a hard hitting game, it is all good. Heck, I even like to wrestle with my brother. There are tons of things that can just take my mind of the stress of everyday life.

What I like to do when I'm feeling run down or tired is to put in a wrestling video. My collection is always updating so I never run out of material. I have tons of videos, ranging from WWE, ECW, TNA, and ROH. I even picked up a FIP DVD at Best Buy. If you think about it, wrestling DVD's are even good for the casual fans because they just take the good stuff. I remember one time I was just exhausted with everything. I pulled out ROH Vendetta and popped it into the DVD player. I decided to check out Bryan Danielson vs. Roderick Strong, and boy was it ever entertaining. Not only did it hold my attention, but it took my mind off of all the other junk in my life. It was just 55 minutes of wrestling ecstasy, and I felt much better when I was done watching it. Wrestling DVD's also come in handy on sick days. I recently spent a week out of school and was able to check out my new WWE Ladder Match DVD. Really awesome video and it focuses on three different time periods of ladder matches. I was able to see matches I had never seen before, such as Razor Ramon vs. Shawn Michaels II, and the Rock vs. Triple H. I was able to see matches that I had only seen clips of or slightly remember, such as The Hardyz/E & C/The Dudleyz matches. I was also able to relive matches that I had seen recently like Money in the Bank. It was just something I could do to relax and rest up. It also took my mind off of all the homework I had to make up. And if I ever want a good laugh, I can just watch a Sid Vicious match. Wrestling videos are just a great way to cool down, relive some good moments, or get acquainted with some new ones. Thanks wrestling DVD creators.

If I ever need to get away from everything and get some good wrestling insight, I turn to 411Mania. In the morning, I can just warm up with a quick article or a recap. 411Mania is a great way for me to catch up on anything I missed with the hectic schedule. Reading these articles make me feel like I'm not alone. I guess that feels really cheesy, but being in school with nobody that watches or can relate to wrestling and living with a family who hardly ever catches the shows, 411 is a way I can relate with other wrestling fans. I can read Larry's "Your News, My Views" and say, "Hey, Larry is actually making sense!" (Just kidding Larry. You always make sense. Don't fire me….please.) And I can read the forums and see what other wrestling fans think, whether it is good or bad. All of the articles here are well written, and they have introduced me to a variety of new things. Before I started writing/reading here, I only knew of WWE and slightly of TNA. I had never heard of any Indy feds, and now I have ROH DVD's and am trying to go see BoLA 2007 this summer and see some of my fellow writers. 411 is really one of the best things to happen to me. I get to learn about different wrestling promotions, read other people's thoughts, and even spread my opinions to others. Thanks 411Mania! (cheap pop)

Nowadays I can satisfy my video game and wrestling hungers at once with wrestling videogames. When I am sentenced to my room, which happens more than it doesn't, I can take out some of my fury pwning on SvR 2007. I can just relax and dominate some cruisers with Undertaker or even challenge myself with CM Punk vs. Khali. I have spent countless hours playing that game, running through things like story mode and GM mode. I often talk about how I enjoy creating wrestlers, so I wont go that in depth. These are a fun way to just chill out, and with the update in graphics, I can simulate matches and watch them in place of real wrestling. All in all, these games are a great escape for me and I have to thank the developers and WWE for doing something right.

My favorite way to really live wrestling is wrestling with my brother and/or friend. I'm sure many of you can relate to play wrestling when you were kids, or currently, like Matt Q. Either way, it is a fun way to take out some aggression, have fun, and exercise. We use seat cushions as weapons, along with drumsticks, a chain necklace, febreeze, and anything else we can get our hands on. I mentor my brother and friend about "selling" moves, but that still doesn't stop my friend from countering everything my little does. I, however help him, by jumping from moves such as German Suplexes. I even let him Shining Wizard me, which he botched and hit me in the forehead with the top of his foot. And I let him Ole Kick me. Not a fun experience. One time, when both my friend and brother wrestled, we were able to do such double team moves as the Snapshot, and our original, the Elevated RKO. The move is when I flapjack my brother, then my friend runs and RKO's him. That move is officially copywritten, so if I see that happen on TV, I'm suing! All in all, it is just harmless fun, but is also my favorite wrestling pastime that I have, hands down.

So that concludes my look at why wrestling can be considered the great escape for me. I can use it to jump out of real life and input myself in the world of professional wrestling. Now we have some feedback~!

Feedback

My first piece of feedback is a general love of me and my column from Thomas Williams:

So you say you never get any feedback, well let me put in my two since. I
enjoy your look at the simple things that make wrestling great. Your WWE
vs. TNA columns are fun too man.
Thomas Williams

I get feedback now!! Anyway, sorry about replying so late, and thanks dude! The next piece of feedback pertains to my Internet column last week with a few suggestions, and is from Steve

Hey, great column, first of all. And since you were
talking about the net and wrestling I figured I would
write and give ya a couple of more tips you might not
be aware of.

You mentioned youtube, do a search under shoot
interview and look for a youtuber called
mrshootinterviewv2. He used to have a ton of shoot
interviews up.

In fact just look for my profile chianarulz
and check out my subs. Most of the major wrestling
posters are on my list.

Second, another video site for you, Daily Motion.
Almost any major matches or ppv's are posted on this
site and the DM doesnt remove em as fast as youtube
does. Just google daily motion and the site should
come up for ya.

Okay on to my favorite topic, wrestling games. First,
there is an indy wrestling game called Wrestling
Encore. Decent lil game, the graphics stink but the
guy tried to put all kinds of match types and weapons
in his game. He has a demo up on his site for ya to
try out and the game is only 15 bucks shipped.

www.mdickie.com

thats his site. Okay if you really want to play some
awesome wrestling games, buy a sega dreamcast. They
run about 20-40 bucks dependin on where you get it.
Believe it or not that lil system is very robust.
Once you do that, start lookin for a game called Fire
Pro Wrestling D. That is the greatest wrestling game
ever, as far as just amount of moves, match types, and
fun. Its 2D but its as fun as anything I have ever
played. Now by looking, Im talking look for a
download of it to burn to CD. Also New Japan put out
a couple of games for the DC as well that are just
awesome. Nothing like choosing Bruiser Brody in a
game and whoopin tail.

The legality of that is well..its not. So if you dont
wanna do that, then get this thing for a PS2 called a
magic swap disc. And get the game Fire Pro Wrestling
Returns. There is a review of the game on 411mania up
now so check it out.

One last thing on videos for ya, Highspots.com.
Sometimes they put up some free stuff and you can see
it there. One of the free ones is for a movie called
Hero's of Burke County. Now the sad part is I live in
the next county over and those guys in that movie
(which they are a bit slow...to be kind) are just..out
there. You have to see it to believe it.

Anyway, I enjoy your column and I hope I told you
about some gaming stuff you didnt know about. If you
didnt know about the DC stuff and you have more
questions, hit me up and I will try to help ya all I
can. It took a bit for me to learn how to "back up"
and find back ups of DC games. But its well worth it
because the games are tons of fun.

okay..im out.

Steve aka CR

Tons of info provided that is really useful. That wrestling encore game is an experience, I'll say that. Thanks Steve for all great info! Here is a little feedback about my favorite botch, the Goldberg KO, and is from Chris Jacobs:

Small complaint on the ring ropes blooper with Goldberg. He hit the damn POST, head on, OUT COLD!!! Anyway love the columns, take care.

Goldberg + Knocked Out = Priceless.

Here is some more feedback on wrestling video games, from Drgnslyer2000:

Read your column about the internet. Nice read. I'm not sure if you have heard of it but there is a game called Total Extreme Wrestling that lets you be the head booker (and owner or not, your call) of a fed.

You set up TV shows & pay per views with matches and angles (anything that happens in the show that isn't a match like interviews, videos, attacks & skits). Your shows are rated on how well the angles & matches work out and your fed grows or dies accordingly. You don't see the match or get an in depth analysis of it, you get a text for each segment describing it very briefly and if the crowd enjoyed it or not. You also hire & fire wrestlers and do the other stuff bookers do.

It doesn't come with real wrestlers (I think the fictional world is awesome though and I always use it) but you can create your own or find a "mod" where someone has created a darabase of today's wrestling world or the wrestling world in 1983 or many others.

I don't mean for this to be an ad (I don't get paid by them). You may already know about it and/or you might not like it. Its 34.95 which is a bit high IMHO for a text game but thetech support is great. Bugs get squashed very quickly. The website is http://www.greydogsoftware.com/.

Hope this was helpful. And great column, I remember when I first got a computer how fascinated I was with wrestling websites (and the internet in general).

Man, we are getting tons of info on online wrestling games. Nice job, bud. Our final piece of feedback comes from the Honorable Maffew:

Thanks!

There, that's it.

But seriously, it was very nice of you to mention me and I'm glad someone as prestigious as a mighty 411mania writer (you seem new, but I don't care) likes the vids.

Take it easy,

Maffew.

Hehe. He called me mighty. Anyway, that just about wraps it up for me. Make sure to send you comments, questions, or concerns to me. You stay classy, 411Mania readers.