10 Things Nobody Has Told You About Wrestling Yet

6. There's Such A Thing As Toxic Positivity

Vince McMahon
WWE

"Just enjoy wrestling!"

You read sentiments like this all the time, and it appears to be innocuous. Maybe you can't be arsed with the discourse, and who can blame you? You just like to sit back, snack, and enjoy what's put in front of you even if it isn't all that great or inspiring.

That's fine; telling people to shut up and stop talking about and just enjoy it isn't.

This attitude encourages wrestling promoters to put in minimal effort.

There's nothing wrong with approaching wrestling analytically. If nobody did that - and the "Just enjoy it!" prophesy came to pass - we'd still be stuck with the original incarnation of the Dark Order and the Nightmare Collective milling about on Dynamite. Many fans expressed their boredom and frustration with those developments, and AEW evolved into an exponentially better wrestling promotion when Tony Khan responded to fan feedback. They were able to enjoy it more after engaging their brains and demanding better.

Toxic positivity is a defence mechanism cultivated by those whose identity is so wrapped around the thing they like that they can't accept criticism of it.

 
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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!