Sci Fi Channel

[CallmeJim]

Why in the world does the Sci Fi channel have wrestling on, at any time? Seriously of all the channels for it to be on. They could atleast make it Mexican wrestling, atleast that is a little more science "fictiony". . .
(I realize fictiony is not a word)

 

[Maestro]

Well, it may not be "science" but it sure as hell is "fiction."

 

[The Nth Doctor]

The original reason was because USA (which ones Sci-Fi Channel) needed someone to pickup some of the wrestling time slots. The ratings were so good, that they kept it over at Sci-Fi.

 

[CallmeJim]

I know I just didn't want to say it in case some one on here is a wrestling fan. If I remember correctly when I was young if someone suggested that WWF/E type of wrestling wasn't real, fans would get extremely angry.

 

[Kryton]

WWE/F is quite real...it's just scripted before it gets to the fighting part, right?

 

[Samurai8472]

sometimes i'm glad my cable company took out Scifi. It took the cable company 4 to 5 years to realize we weren't suppose to have expanded cable. I got it right around the time stargate aired it's 6th season.

 

[Hermiod]

I know I just didn't want to say it in case some one on here is a wrestling fan. If I remember correctly when I was young if someone suggested that WWF/E type of wrestling wasn't real, fans would get extremely angry.

I'm a fan, and I don't.

Professional Wrestling is not real. The outcomes of matches and determined in advance. It's unfair to say the matches are "scripted" as often the performers will just wing it until they reach the predetermined conclusion. The referee keeps an eye on the time and any "spots" (i.e. predetermined moments in the match) while the performers quietly call which moves they are going to do to allow the other performers to prepare.

All of the moves are performed in such a way as to not genuinely hurt the performer. That does not mean that there is no chance of serious injury, believe me there is.

The entertainment comes from watching highly skilled performers like Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels do what they do in the ring, and from the storylines that surround the matches.

The reason WWE's ECW brand is on Sci-Fi is that NBC Universal owed WWE an hour a week somewhere in their schedule and Tuesdays at 10pm on Sci-Fi was free. The USA Network already has WWE Raw and NBC itself is far too mainstream for wrestling.

 

[RoJoHen]

Mexicans are fiction?

 

[Hermiod]

^Yes.

 

[CallmeJim]

Mexicans are fiction?

Not where I live. What I meant was that in AAA wrestling (Mexican wrestling) their costumes are at times extravagant to say the least
and if watched too late at night they might cause nightmares.

 

[TemporalFlux]

Why in the world does the Sci Fi channel have wrestling on, at any time?

To answer this question, we go to science correspondent Hulk Hogan.

I'll tell ya why, brother. In no time, these 22 inch pythons can bend your head into any space both known and unknown; and after I'm done, the ironic moral at the end is you carried out the door tryin' to convince yourself the pain ain't real. There's no doublin' back, brother; Hulkamania's gonna haunt your dreams; Hulkamania's gonna lurk in the shadows; and when you least expect it, Hulkamania's gonna run wild on you.

 

[CallmeJim]

Didn't some wrestler punch out Geraldo for saying wrestling was "fake"? Or was
that a Quantum Leap episode I'm remembering?

 

[Hermiod]

Apparently so.

Now, I say this, but this video claims to be of Geraldo but it's not. It's a reporter named John Stossel being assaulted by a former wrestler named David Schultz. The video is apparently misattributed to Geraldo.

It's less true now, but wrestlers take the concept of Kayfabe seriously. Kayfabe is basically the creation of the outward appearance that professional wrestling is real. This means two people who are currently in an TV feud should not be seen out in public together, for instance.

However, these days, most wrestling fans are in on the whole business and just enjoy it for what it is.