tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1897648734607335225.post8472259089225279192..comments2024-03-26T14:14:14.607-04:00Comments on Ringside at Skull Island: Kings' DominionUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1897648734607335225.post-69410180690721793472017-03-03T11:38:16.037-05:002017-03-03T11:38:16.037-05:00While I'm not inherently opposed to innovation...While I'm not inherently opposed to innovation and trying new things, something about the title Heelbash rubs me the wrong way. It's because Heelbash is obviously a play on Hunkbash, and so little imagination and effort has gone into the Hunkbash series in the last few years that Heelbash feels less like BG East saying, "the Hunkbash tapes are popular, so what if we play with that formula and try a heel on heel scene," than that they're saying, "Hunkbash is boring; why don't we make it better by eliminating the hunks."<br /><br />My Heelbash malaise is compounded by the fact that I live in Miami, go clubbing pretty regularly and have seen and chatted with a lot of the guys who've appeared in Hunkbash videos dancing doing the go-go boy thing. It's an odd dichotomy to see a guy one night doing standing backflips, flexing and smiling in a jockstrap (or even less, depending on the venue) while his oiled up body glistens under a spotlight and he readily engages all the people who want to come up to him whether they're tipping him or not, only to see that same guy pop up on a wrestling video--which should be the hottest, most exciting thing for me given how much I love wrestling--where he simply stands there then gets destroyed by some other guy who spends the next 20 minutes flaunting his own less-impressive body while endlessly ranting about how pathetic, dull and lifeless the guy I know and have seen in person is. And it's not about the squash job thing. I personally love squash job on particularly hot guys. It's just how dull and unimaginative they are now compared to just a few years ago. <br /><br />I've spoken to a few of those guys, three of whom are surely among the most popular wrestlers working out there, two of them who jobbed exclusively, one of whom jobbed a lot in the beginning but now seems only to work heel, and have talked with them about the wrestling thing. The two guys who jobbed exclusively both said they've long since quit wrestling, not because they didn't like it or couldn't handle the physical stuff, but simply because it was degrading, like they were being paid to prove how pathetic they were. And the third guy (who is everywhere these days), said he switched to heeling even though it's much more work and he can't tape as many matches in a row having to come up with new choreography each time because the guys who produce the videos are much more friendly to him in that role. He specifically said when he was a jobber the feeling was more like he was just a prop, and though they were always nice to him, it was still kind of arms length. But when he switched to heeling, he was kind of embraced, like he was a real wrestler now and one of the boys.<br /><br />I think it shows in the videos. Hunkbash feels like an obligation, like BG East just goes through the motions of putting one out now and then to get the money, but Heelbash seems like this gigantic labor of love. That's fine I guess, but I personally can help missing the old energy that went into so many videos I loved.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com