Stimulus

Brendan Byers vs Gabe Steel, Catalog 21 - Boys Will Be Boys (MuscleBoy Wrestling)

I love the way Brendan and Gabe use their whole bodies as battering rams. Their wrestling matches exhibit the joy of physical contact, whether by entanglement or blows. Both have strong exhibitionist tendencies, but they are at their best when pressed against an opponent or stretching upwards, striking a pose. The term polymorphous perversity  applies here - the idea that some of us experience erotic stimulation through more parts of the body than the designated genitalia and through behaviors that  are unrelated to procreation or, in some cases, penetration.

I was looking forward to this matchup long before it became a reality. There are big egos at work here - perhaps even egos at risk. Brendan and Gabe are natural opponents, built sturdily and prone to menacing gestures. Strikes are not just delivered; they are designed to draw an audience into the melee. Each punch and stomp is preceded by a beat that stops time and makes me catch my breath. Brendan's whole body is a sneer. How he has accomplished that I cannot say. By contrast, Gabe may be wrestling's friendliest heel. The guy is a people person, which doesn't stop him from liking to hurt people, too. You might have to go back to the 1950s to find a wrestler of comparable disposition in the pro ring or in the underground.

Pain, humiliation, body contact, possession, victory - an underground wrestler's motivations are varied and far from run of the mill. Few wrestlers are as "out there" as Byers and Steel, and watching them brush up against each other is magic.

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