Fantastic Posted May 12, 2014 Report Share Posted May 12, 2014 Best: (eg) The guys who looked the part, who personified the "look" that a professional wrestler should have, or looked as tough as they were made out to be Worst (eg) The guys who didn't have any style , the guys who could pass as any guy off the street, or the guys so out of shape you were surprised they weren't the types who gassed climbing up a flight of stairs, let alone wrestled 20+ minute intense matches several times each month. For me, I'm personally a big fan of the physiques that some of the wrestlers in Japan have developed over the years. They maybe don't look as aesthetic, cut and comicbook-like as their American counterparts, but they live up to the image suggested by their style of wrestling (Strong Style, King's Road, etc). For me, there is something that cries "toughness" and "legitimacy" when I look at compact tanks such as Kawada, Sasaki, or Ishii. You don't get that from more cut guys. Obviously, you have people who look like crap in Puro. Tenryu and Taue both spring to mind. Tenryu, despite the fact I love him, looked worse without a shirt on throughout his entire career than Ric Flair did from 2000 onwards! Taue seemingly never bothered to train his upper body for size, perhaps inspired by the Giant Baba look. Over in the States, for me there is no better example of the "WWE look" than the late Ultimate Warrior. As big as a comic book hero and ripped to shreds, with long flowing hair, he personified "Sports Entertainment" and that cartoony era. In terms of a prominent WWE star who never looked the part, I've got to go with Jeff Hardy. You could pretty much mistake him for a regular guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steenalized Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Tenryu's look, even old Tenryu, never bothered me. Tenryu doesn't seem like the guy who would bother lifting, he seems like an ornery old bastard. I don't think his shape was ideal, it simply doesn't bother me. Hansen had a great look for the big, mean, ass kicking redneck persona. Dick Murdoch too. Guys who were big and strong, still great athletes, but you could see them putting down a beer or twenty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantastic Posted May 13, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Tenryu's look, even old Tenryu, never bothered me. Tenryu doesn't seem like the guy who would bother lifting, he seems like an ornery old bastard. I don't think his shape was ideal, it simply doesn't bother me. Hansen had a great look for the big, mean, ass kicking redneck persona. Dick Murdoch too. Guys who were big and strong, still great athletes, but you could see them putting down a beer or twenty. Agree about Hansen and Murdoch, both had that roughneck laborer look to them. Also, there's no way I can leave these two out of this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subatomic_elbow Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I love Brodus Clay's look. He looks like he would legit do bad things to you. Also, Rusev. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantastic Posted May 13, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I love Brodus Clay's look. He looks like he would legit do bad things to you. Also, Rusev. Rusev is great! He's got that classic Eastern Bloc weightlifter look going on. If WWE goes to hell for him, I could see him doing really well in NJPW, at least where being booked based on his look is concerned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Death From Above Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Modern hairless chipendale wrestlers (which seems to be at least three quarters of the current TV crop) couldn't look less intimidating if they all crossdressed. In fact a good chunk of them would look significantly more intimidating as drag queens than they do as men in speedos. I literally know of no other subculture but wrestling where bodybuilders are considered a tough guy look, but that's Vince projecting his fetishes for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfman Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 No one looked cooler than Superstar Billy Graham in the 70's (who basically sucked as a wrestler) and no one looked worse than Adrian Adonis during his Adorable days in the 80's (who was an awesome wrestler). Looks do not define talent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El-P Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 I literally know of no other subculture but wrestling where bodybuilders are considered a tough guy look, Porn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steenalized Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 Modern hairless chipendale wrestlers (which seems to be at least three quarters of the current TV crop) couldn't look less intimidating if they all crossdressed. In fact a good chunk of them would look significantly more intimidating as drag queens than they do as men in speedos. I literally know of no other subculture but wrestling where bodybuilders are considered a tough guy look, but that's Vince projecting his fetishes for you. Body hair makes you look like a coward. Seriously though, it's not an intimidating look. Impressive in some ways, but not intimidating. If I had to fight my way past someone who looked like Artur Taymasov, someone who looked like Zydrunas Savickas, or someone who looks like the Ultimate Warrior, I'm going with the dehydrated one that's about to gas out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohtani's jacket Posted May 15, 2014 Report Share Posted May 15, 2014 Modern hairless chipendale wrestlers (which seems to be at least three quarters of the current TV crop) couldn't look less intimidating if they all crossdressed. In fact a good chunk of them would look significantly more intimidating as drag queens than they do as men in speedos. I literally know of no other subculture but wrestling where bodybuilders are considered a tough guy look, but that's Vince projecting his fetishes for you. Steve Reeves? Arnold Schwarzenegger? Lou Ferrigno? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SomethingSavage Posted May 15, 2014 Report Share Posted May 15, 2014 Uhh, yeah. Superheroes. Greek Gods. The Olympians. Gladiators. Spartans. Whether or not anyone really believes anyone back then actually looked like bodybuilders or not, there's something to be said about the fact that all the statues & paintings seem to portray them in that light. This is kind of steering away from wrestling, but ya get the idea. Going back to wrestling though? No one looked cooler than Superstar Billy Graham in the 70's (who basically sucked as a wrestler) and no one looked worse than Adrian Adonis during his Adorable days in the 80's (who was an awesome wrestler). Looks do not define talent. That's the obvious answer. Sums things up well enough. Besides, there's nothing interesting about one streamlined, universal prototype. Pro 'rasslin is built on the backs & shoulders of diverse characters, personalities, and looks. No one body type should be "better" or "worse" than another, really. Tough is tough. Skilled is skilled. You can be lean, meaty, short, tall, scruffy, or sleek. Shouldn't matter. The aim & the goal should lie in being different. Looking different. Behaving differently. It's the unique traits & qualities that separate one from the rest of the pack. Embrace those things & run with 'em. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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