how to get into wrestling???

the wrestling talk about aew on this most recent podcast ep has piqued my interest

i haven't really watched any wrestling television but it seems like something that is very cool when done right

i sort of wanna get into it but i dunno

(also i don't have cable so this is probably all for naught)

Not all for naught at all! Really the simplest way to go about this is check out either old matches that are considered really great or just start watching weekly shows. Specifically with AEW there's Dynamite on Wednesday's and Rampage on Friday. 2 hours and 1 hour respectively. Now these are on cable, but you can watch through various other means without much trouble at all.

The weekly shows do a good job of updating you on what's happening since weekly television keeps in mind that new people can be watching at anytime. Otherwise there are loads of other companies as well that you can start watching right now and just go for it. There's never been a better time to get into wrestling tbh. If you have any other questions just shoot em off I'm sure ton of people here will answer em.

Don't.

Yeah, don't unless it's clips of old school stuff (the mid 80's to early 90's) when the industry was actually fun or Japanese offerings which treats things more as a sport and is way more consistent than what the States has produced in decades.

Ignore posts 3 & 4. Now is a great time to get into AEW as a source of wrestling, especially with CM Punk returning. They heyday will always be the WWF (WWE) Attitude Era so possibly Google the go-to recommendations for the WWE Network.

I'm sure there are plenty of articles about it too, but for now, AEW may be your best bet in terms of modern/recent professional wrestling.

Ignore post 5 for telling you to ignore posts 3 & 4.

I love wrestling, I've been a fan for thirty years, and to this day I still find myself defending the "sport" on what seems like a weekly basis and why I've been such a fan....but at the same time I would never try to sell someone on getting into it in during the era that has driven me away and would flat out tell those thinking about it to avoid doing so. This coming from a guy that just downloaded his daily limit of created content in Action Arcade Wrestling while still patiently waiting on that delayed day one patch, and trying to fill out my 2K19 roster before they shut down their servers next month.

My opinion is no more important than anyone elses, but it's just as valid. AEW may be better than WWE when it comes to their business dealing and treatment of their talent, but it suffers from just as many of the same problems plaguing the industry stateside and there's just as much crap to sift through. You wouldn't know that though as it's the smart mark promotion that can do no wrong because it's not WWE. For all that it does good, it still has an underwhelming lower to midcard roster, some of which (Dark Order I'm looking at you) shouldn't be on tv as they lack the look, charisma, and mic skills that would've typically got ya over in the past.

Everything is too ring performance driven and evaluated as such by fans raised on the top industry critic's (Dave Meltzer) bullshit wrestling scale of perfection leading to the same overdrawn kickout heavy matches where finishes don't matter and it's all about the ballet between the two involved. Regardless of there lacking any sort of believability or aura of such thanks to social media postings of them sitting around playing video games or behind the scenes glimpses of the promotions and industry as a whole pulling the curtain too far back on entertainment medium that once used a circus/carnie way of secrecy to develop more engaging rivalries and larger than life characters with charisma for days that made you want to run out and buy their action figure not because they were some undeveloped gymnast who is just content to flip for flipping's sake.

None of that matters anymore though as the craft and care of developing a good product has slipped over the years, mostly thanks the "Montreal Screwjob" exposing the business for many and a lot of stagnation thanks to the WWE being the only choice leading to fans transitioning from "mark" to "smart mark" and taking more of an interest in the behind the scenes politics and that's what led to AEW. A promotion...while not terrible, is placed a bit too high on a pedestal by fans and bookers that were conditioned to think a certain way leading to the state of the industry we have to which has affected all facets of modern wrestling stateside unfortunately as too many forget what it was, and what made it so engaging.

As a newcomer, if you dive in, the best way to do it is strictly concentrate on the product and avoid social media side ventures the talent may have or the shop talk that may go on with your friends...but still, it's just not what it used to be, where not everyone needed to be technicians in the ring, and there was more effort to entertain/develop legitimate stars.

But what do I know, I'm just some disillusioned boomer that thinks everything sucks nowadays.

Ignore posts 2-7 and delete this entire thread from your memory.

yknow what

ok

At least you're self aware! I'll repeat though that there's never been a better time to get into wrestling than now. There's so much variety and available wrestling that it's easier than ever to jump in.

Yo, go to a few indie shows in your area (if you feel safe doing so). Do a little digging, I'm guessing there's probably something near you. There's like four separate promotions within an hour drive of me and I am not in a major city. The indie shows I've been to have all been bangers. You'll get so much more out of it being at a live event with crowd energy, and with indie shows you can get prime viewing for like $10-$20. Once you've been to a few, you'll start to see traveling performers from your region and develop favorites.

@fugoy:I was going to post that very same thing! So don't listen to the bad takes @blergh.

An easy start would be Lucha Underground. It's self contained, it's 4 seasons, and it's available on streaming services. It's also mostly a TV show mixed with wrestling that has the vibe of a grindhouse-/b-movie.

For US wrestling, you've got AEW that hands down has more hype and momentum behind it than any other wrestling company in decades. (Unless you count that small sliver of time when the new World of Sport was turning heads but then got destroyed) For a novice, I'd recommend just watching the two TV shows, Dynamite and Rampage. The commentary is good at getting you up to speed on who the people are and what the storylines are. It's just an all-around good time, especially if you're new to wrestling and your mind doesn't constantly look at what's going wrong instead of what's going right (a problem I too suffer from).

Then you've got Impact wrestling which is doing it's own thing. They're purposefully campy and try not to take themselves too seriously. I'm not really sure if they still do it, but I think they stream their show on Twitch on Thursdays. Caution: The commentary is real bad and grating and doesn't really know how to convey what's going on in the matches and storylines.

Finally, for the US round-up you've got the dark horse, MLW, which has a show on Vice? I think? MLW is smaller than the two and takes more chances. They have MMA dudes fighting Mexican Wrestlers and the works.

Then, you've got Japan. The big fish is NJPW, which has the streaming service NJPW World. The notable thing is they're currently featuring Shingo Takagi, who has arguably been the best wrestler in the world for over a decade and is finally getting his big break. NJPW has terrific matches and the English commentary is actually pretty decent. It's more of a sports anime vs. the US wrestling's daytime soap.

Next, you've got the value proposition of WRESTLE UNIVERSE. It's a streaming service run by the company that owns several wrestling federations in Japan. They've got DDT which is known primarily for their comedy stuff such as a ladder winning a wrestling title, but also have good matches. It's where a lot of big stars in NJPW and AEW got their breaks. Then there's NOAH, the legendary Japanese wrestling federation that is making a strong comeback and had an absolute banger of a year in 2020. They have absolute masterpieces of heavyweight matches. (The service also has the old NOAH matches which are still considered to be the best wrestling matches in the history of wrestling). Finally, you've got Tokio Joshi Pro, a women's wrestling federation based around strong characterization. TJPW is working together with AEW, so you'll see their wrestlers make appearances in AEW from time to time.

Last, but not least, is my federation of choice: Dragon Gate, streaming on Dragon Gate Network. Dragon Gate is a weird mix of Mexican wrestling styles and Japanese Junior Heavyweight wrestling styles. Unlike other Japanese wrestling federations, Dragon Gate puts a lot of emphasis on mic work and storylines. Their match style is fast paced, but mixes in a lot of storytelling. When you try to get into it the matches can seem dauntingly hard to follow with the speed, but the choreography mesmerizing to watch. Then, when you get into it, you'll start seeing the actual meaning behind it all: the way a lot of the moves and segments are actually reflections of past matches. While that is true for all wrestling, Dragon Gate puts an absolute focus on it. They also have yearly weird traditions, such as the Dead or Alive Cage match, where wrestlers have to gamble on things in a cage match with always different convoluted rules, or the Doi Darts, where small children throwing darts determine matches and storylines for the coming year.

All in all, just go for it man. What have you got to lose, other than your time or a maximum of 10 dollars? Heck, just watch it together with friends either live or over the internet. Wrestling is a social event and it really benefits from having friends to enjoy it with.

Honestly I would just get into AEW and nothing else. WE is just too much.

Get into anime instead.

On second thought...wrestling isn't such a bad idea.

Now is a good time to get into New Japan Pro Wrestling.

We're just about to have the "G1 Climax"- a month long tournament where 20 wrestlers make up two blocks of 10, and everyone fights everyone. The winners of the blocks then usually fight, and the winner of THAT goes on for a shot at the big gold belt.

It's good, cause you'll see 20 different wrestlers, and you can work out who you like, and then go from there!