There is some bad language and the use of a particular invective in this... just to give you a heads up.
You know the kind of person who makes such a spectacle of themselves that it makes you look bad by extension? This is one of this instances where that has happened. I like wrestling, I really do, but people like the above example make it very hard for me to admit that publicly. And it is this kind of fan that made me opt out of going to local wrestling events, because I don't want to be associated with fans like this. I mean, on some level, I am embarrassed to be connecting my blog with that kind of fanaticism, even just to call it out.
And I would hold that opinion no matter what the above ranting was about... it is not wrestling-centric. If he was having a tantrum like that about football, 24, James Bond or any other thing which I either love or dislike, I'd still look at that behavior with disapproving eyes.
What I find sad is this isn't even isolated to the wrestling community (though it is surprisingly large), but rather an example of something that goes on in almost every segment of the pop culture fandom.
Don't believe me?
The phrase "This is what I love and you're killing it" was uttered in this video. I am sure somewhere online, you can find that phrase with George Lucas, J.J. Abrams, Electronic Arts, Uwe Boll or Michael Bay (ok, that one may be warranted) in front of it, and being represented as the opinion of all fandom when that isn't the case.
And if you aren't like the above people, somehow, you aren't a real fan. How and when did not acting like a complete dipshit end up being equated with a lack of love for something? Seriously, I would like to know.
So just because I act like, I don't know, a normal person when it comes to the things I enjoy, that somehow makes me not as committed or less of a fan in general. Honestly, if that is the case, than I don't want to live in that twisted, insular world then. What is the point of enjoying something if you have to act like that to what, show that you are more hardcore than someone else? Where is the joy? I see no happiness in that kind of existence.
That isn't to say that at times the things I enjoy couldn't be better, but I certainly don't act like that. And in the past I've gone after the Fanboy mentality.
I just happened to leave a comment on that above video, calling him the Chris Crocker of wrestling videos, which to me is an insult, but he took it as a compliment because Crocker gets a lot of hits (and he felt that people were jealous of his notoriety rather than objecting to his general demeanor).
But once again, there is one pop cultural institution that really nailed this all on the head. I am of course talking about The Simpsons and the character of Comic Book Guy.
Comic Book Guy: Last night's Itchy & Scratchy was, without a doubt, the worst episode ever. Rest assured I was on the Internet within minutes registering my disgust throughout the world.
Bart: Hey, I know it wasn’t great, but what right do you have to complain?
Comic Book Guy: As a loyal viewer, I feel they owe me.
Bart: What? They’re giving you thousands of hours of entertainment for free. What could they possibly owe you? If anything, you owe them.
Comic Book Guy: [hesitantly] ...Worst episode ever.
If I ever become so humorless and let's face it, whacked out, please for the sake of all that is holy, slap me upside the head, because life is too short to be so wound up about things which are simply supposed to be entertainment.
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