Over at The Beat, I was tapped to talk about John Cena’s final match, and I decided to use it as a chance to talk about how comics and pro wrestling essentially have the same DNA.
From the article:
“Folks sometimes wonder why there is wrestling coverage at The Beat. I’ve never quite understood the question. The medium might be different, but the heart of wrestling beats the same as many parts of comics. Folks in spandex participating in grand fictions. Twists in narrative leading to shocking moments. Larger than life personalities and situations, always bending towards a simple idea: good, in the end, will always win – if not in the moment, than as a state of being.
“Heroes may face hardship. They might even die. But that’s not the end. Good eventually lives. Our heroes always breathe again, if not on the page or screen, then in spirit.
“None of it is real – and yet the emotion remains. Wrestling is superhero comics, and superhero comics are wrestling… with one important distinction.
“Superheroes aren’t real people.
“Wrestlers are.“
The whole post covers the majority of Cena’s retirement year while putting into context the way reality and fiction play into professional wrestling. Turns out, I had ideas about it.
If you’re a fan of wrestling, give it a read! And if you’re not, s’all good. Give it a read if the fancy strikes you.
Talk with you soon.
-B.