Does blading still have a place in wrestling? Let us know in the comments... 48 HOUR EARLY ACCESS ON PATREON: bit.ly/3nB5PmX SUBSCRIBE TO partsFUNknown: bit.ly/2J2Hl6q & please share this video around!
First off excellent video, my drunken thoughts are; blading is an art and like every form of art there's stuff that gets tacked to the refrigerator, stuff that hangs in the louvre and stuff on a napkin handed to you buy a weirdo on a bus, personally blading is not any different from hard style but it almost seems safer in that you avoid the concussion, I think peoples love of blood sports like ufc and boxing prove that done the right way blading will always have a place in wrestling
Only under extreme circumstances. If it's rare enough, it can create a lasting memory, like the Austin pass out or Dustin's crimson face. It also needs a LOT of precautions nowadays, given everything we've learned medically as a global collective.
I think if the wrestlers WANT to do it, let them. I remember a Batista interview where he said bleeding was one of the most dramatic ways to tell a story for long and deep feuds
It's not that simple though. Even with the independent contractor loophole, if something goes wrong there then the promotion itself is gonna be the one on the hook.
He didn’t go deep as much as he hit a vein too hard which resulted in the bleeding he did. Especially with his veins being so overused because of the excessive working out and steroid use he had over the years before, an incident like that was bound to happen.
The worst blade job I remember was Eddie Guerrero vs. JBL. Eddie cut himself way too deep and the blood didn't stop flowing. I still get sick when I think about it.
Yeah. He accidentally nicked an artery, and his entire face and chest went completely crimson within seconds. It was so bad that Eddie passed out backstage and required a blood transfusion. I also believe that PPV was rated TV-MA because of that botched blade job
Well he's a demon anyways so good riddance He never made sense as a face....undead guy with a magic urn always talking about death and creatures of the night? That's why we liked Ministry Taker, he finally made sense.
In my opinion Blading should be a "special event" kind of thing. If you do it every week it gets dull but only on some ppvs it might elevate the stakes or the intensity of the match
for me it should never happen. Look at Becky Lynch bleeding nose. Look at Finn Balor matches lately, the guy is so invested he gets cut open. That is what brings intensity, blading brings nothing imo.
I think the key is moderation. Blading is a way to enhance the story, no one will deny that but when does the performer's safety get in the way of the quality of the product? People complain that the product is watered down but also complained about the chairshots, piledrivers and blading being too extreme for wrestling. Not every show/feud needs blood but feuds like Drew vs Orton come along once, maybe twice a year where a heated feud should showcase a bit of the stuff to truly capture the story.
I'll tell you why blading stopped because of HIV- AIDS in South Carolina if a drop of blood gets on the mat the state comm stops the match and makes the promoter to get bleach hot soapy water and wash the changes which means the fat lady has sung cause you can't work in a wet ring
All I could think about was Eddie Guerrero vs. JBL. Eddie cut himself to deep, and spilled over a pint of blood in less than an hour. I wouldn’t have remembered who won the match if it wasn’t for this video.
As someone who has both bladed and been opened up the hard way; I'll take blading every time thank you very much. Hard way has too many variables and in my experience are much harder to heal up from. Hard way splits the skin deep and wide, where blading tends to be thin and superficial and heals up within a week.
The WWE literally used to have a match (First Blood) dedicated to wrestlers winning if they made their opponent bleed, so Vince definitely needs to shut it
Quality quality content laurie. Great to get away from the current day booking, pushes, burials n news and just going back to one of the roots of wrestling that make you think and introspect.
Great stuff as ever, Laurie. Really bringing out the complexities of the issue. One minor criticism, though - No mention of Great Muta v Hiroshi Hase. There’s a reason we rate bladejob intensity on the Muta Scale...
@@Kay_Sea251 It was a blade job and he just cut way to deep. That's very well know and he has a permanent scar from it. That is the match that created the "muta" scale of blood loss.
I get where blood can help intensity a fued but I think it looses its luster if you use it too much. With that said, Dustin's blade job was too much. I remember one shot of his head barely off the mat and blood shooting out like a tap. It took me out of the match, kinda scary especially considering before that JR reminded us tons that he is 50 years old. If you use blood sparingly enough and for the right fued it can work.
Blading should be treated like chair shots to the dome: Needs to be discussed, all parties sign a waiver, and the promotion is not liable for future damage (like infections stemming from a blade job or brain damage from a dome shot unprotected).
The problem with this is that it's super hard to prove people weren't coerced. This is an industry where people's careers are buried with a few booking decisions
Blading is an individual choice. If someone is happy to do it and take the risk, I see it as no different as choosing to take a piledriver. That's easily a far more risky thing to do.
He's the king of blading for sure. Even more so than Ric Flair. Saw Tommy Rich way back in the early 80's when he was the masked "Mr.R" and he was with Buzz & Brett Sawyer against the Road Warriors and Paul Ellering. Was a 6 man street fight match. Was my first time going to a wrestling show and it was awesome!
When I was younger watching those matches with blood i used to think the blood was fake but when I found out it was real and the wrestlers would cut themselves is actually really sick and dangerous can’t believe they actually did that
I feel like bleeding in a wrestling match could be used but depending on the feud, and match. Plus doing it ever so often so it feels special (how hell in cell use to be xD)
As a FAN, I understand occasions where it is good. But knowing everything we know, it is DANGEROUS to keep doing it. Undeniably someone has some infection that they will give another and is not good to think about when I'm trying to enjoy and escape everything
Ok funny thought, dont kill me: 1920 Promoter: "Come and see The Bleeding Man!" 2020 AEW Fan: "Come and see This Bleeding Man!" Somethings change, others stay the same
When I was living in Puerto Rico, blading seemed to be a normal event on the local TV stations. You would often see wrestlers walking around the town and could pick them out by the amount of scarring on their foreheads. I even seen some of the women that were heavy bladers and scarred up.
Kayfabe died as early as the 1930's. Go watch Abbot and Costello In the Foreign Legion. Namely the opening scene and they are rehearsing a wrestling match. Also no that is not George Steele in the opening scene.
Never thought I'd hear Emile Durkheim referenced in a wrestling video! This is superb stuff Laurie, thank you--wrestling media for the thinking fan. Also, that "The pot calling the kettle Tyler Black" line was hilarious
The old school guys that paved the way were f’n insane. If someone dropped the blade in the audience, the next week, someone would spill claret the hard-way to prove wrestling was real! Nutty bastards! Thank you lads, your sacrifice is massively appreciated! Ha’aaard Way The Lads! 😂
For me, when I was younger and didn't know the details of how wrestling actually worked, I know that I would've had very few issues with blading. But for me, as I am now, it comes in the same area as many other "extreme" aspects of pro "wrestling", should real thumb tacks be used for wrestling? Or barbed wire? Or hard blows to the head with real weapons like chairs, bats and 2x4s? In my opinion the answer is...partially. There is a place for it, but there's a level of etiquette and professionalism that must go with it. No one should ever feel pressured or be forced to participate in a match where they are the one being bladed against their will, likewise, under no circumstances should any of this be allowed if anyone has tested positive for bloodborne infections. At that point, it's at best negligence, and at worst assault or in some cases worse. The hardcore realm of pro wrestling is something that should be handled very carefully and shouldn't be abused, there's a respect that comes with being willing to bleed for your craft, but it must be done in some level of moderation, so that at the end of the day, the people inside and out of the ring can go home knowing that they're safe, at least to a reasonable standard. So long as it doesn't cross the line of being truly self destructive, where a performer is throwing their career or life away, or being disrespectful, negligent and harmful, so as to cause another performer or even people in the crowd harm or endanger them or cause more risk than what that person signed up for and consented to- It has it's place in the personas of performers and the plots of stories that'll go down in history.
The last match I went to was january of 1984. In those days there were territories and our territory was the WWF. Our local arena, Boston Garden had wrestling cards every month. The main event was Andre The Giant vs. Big John Studd in a cage match and the blood was flowing. In 1982 I saw champion Bob Backlund in a Texas Death Match vs. Ray "The Crippler" Stevens. That was bloody as well The opening match that day.was Baron Mikel Sicluna vs. Curt Hennig, who usually was part of a baby face tag team with Eddie Gilbert. I didn't mind the bloody matches stopping as much as i was upset that they buried their most over wrestler Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka and decided to innundate adult fans with cartoon characters and decided that 4 years of going every month was appreciated when the check cleared but I was no longer welcome there because they wanted little kids who would get their parents to buy the toys and cereals that started to come out.they wanted little kids who would follow Hulk Hogan down the aisle or dance in the ring with Junkyard Dog. The WWF wanted their look to reflect the times which is why they all looked ridiculous. They still did it into 1996 when ECW was bringing adults back into watching wrestling. When WWF did the ECW invasion angle you could tell that Mr. McMahon had missed the bus.
I’ve met Abdula The Butcher once at a flea market. I’ve never seen so many thick scars like that before. It’s seriously insane! He was a really nice guy though.
I think I’m for blading in he minority situation in which it is planned before hand, all parties involved are tested leading up to the event, the feud warrants it, and there is a procedure for how to request blading in a match, the a priori steps needed and the post hoc steps needed. Otherwise said, if you’re going to do it, make it rare and extremely safe.
It adds to the storytelling. I would save it for a PPV and limit how many wrestlers blade. One issue that we're seeing now is overuse of blood, specifically in AEW. On a Wed night TV show 3 different wrestlers blade. Save it for PPVs or the end of a fued.
Bottom line is, its all conditional & should be up to the talent. If it can be done safely (sanitised blades, props) during a heated feud & both talents are willing, why not? You'd imagine all talent on major rosters are tested for hep etc & staff would take extra measures to ensure the cleanliness of the ring/other apparatus. I'm not supporting Abdullah or New Jack's bloodbath style, but some of AEW's recent claret has really added to the angle in my opinion. Its important to prioritise talent safety during these matches, but its not like throwing yourself off a cage or a ladder through a table is significantly safer. Taking into consideration the frequency of neck/back injuries.
Great video! My first memories of bloody wrestling was a match between Dusty Rhodes and Abdullah the Butcher. Madness! Barbed wire wrapping the ropes! There was also Ric Flair vs Hogan, Muta vs some Japanese dude. Gross.
One of the most vivid visuals was when the bleach blonde dudes would get color. It would soak into their hair and the contrast was so striking. Think Dusty Rhodes, Ric flair, Tommy "wildfire" Rich.
Great video. Though surprised you did talk about the shepherdes. Two of the most bloodiest men I ever saw till Vince turned them in to the Bushwackers.
Growing up in Puerto Rico and watching the local hardcore matches live and watching ECW and attitude/ruthless agression era WWE I love blood in wrestling. I think there should always be a place for it however it has to be used in the right ways. Dont blade for the sake of blading. Blade because the storyline and the match itself needs it to take it to that next level. I remember on an episode of Raw Seth Rollings curb stomping Dean Ambrose into a (gimmicked) concrete block yet Dean dint bleed. That shit made no sense, in those rare instances blood is necesary imo
Finally someone put a vid out on blading... also at 5:16, I totally forgot about greg (the hammer) valentine wrestled under the name of Johnny Fargo.. Damn, Im getting old too !!
Blaring when used properly can elevate the storytelling of a match spectacularly but there are tons of risks with it so if it were to be completely removed I wouldn’t be against it
The first blade job I ever saw on TV was when Larry hit Bruno with the chair during his infamous heel turn. I suspect WWE received a lot of heat from their TV stations and subsequently started to put up a big red "X" on the screen. For example, when Blackjack Mulligan was brought in as a monster heel to battle Andre, he would use his claw hold busting open jobbers as a way to get him over.
Its ultimately a story telling tool and shouldnt be used but sparingly...like this roman\ jey angle when it blows off or for roman to get heat would make sense...but i cant blame anyone for not wanting to do it. P.S. Karla was awesome
I love that the medical professional even said yes to blading. Blood is the cherry on top of an intense rivalry or sells the violence of an intense match.
Adam Blampied said it once best in one of his previous videos: „Blood shows the endurance of a Wrestler and endure they did“. Blood should be shown in matches that have a lot going on, either in-ring wise or story. For instance, Shawn Michaels vs Triple H in their iconic 3 stages of hell match was already an absolute masterpiece, but with the added blood, viewers became so much more invested and the match felt so much more personal.
I’ve been to numerous wwe tv tapings in the past and they have layers of canvas that they change out after each match in between the commercials unless, of course, they have to do a spot like Gargano v Ciampa where they rip up the ring mat
Does blading still have a place in wrestling? Let us know in the comments...
48 HOUR EARLY ACCESS ON PATREON: bit.ly/3nB5PmX
SUBSCRIBE TO partsFUNknown: bit.ly/2J2Hl6q
& please share this video around!
Movie Tech is so good now just use blood packs
First off excellent video, my drunken thoughts are; blading is an art and like every form of art there's stuff that gets tacked to the refrigerator, stuff that hangs in the louvre and stuff on a napkin handed to you buy a weirdo on a bus, personally blading is not any different from hard style but it almost seems safer in that you avoid the concussion, I think peoples love of blood sports like ufc and boxing prove that done the right way blading will always have a place in wrestling
Yes most definitely
Only under extreme circumstances. If it's rare enough, it can create a lasting memory, like the Austin pass out or Dustin's crimson face. It also needs a LOT of precautions nowadays, given everything we've learned medically as a global collective.
Yes!
The image of Steve Austin in the sharpshooter, drenched in blood, is permanently etched in my mind.
@Varmando Varuso I'd say that was before the Attitude Era
I'm watching WM13 right now, Hart vs Austin, which made me search this lol
Correct
And you never saw Hart blade him.
WM13 was the only WrestleMania in history which was not sold out.
Does Brock Lesnar‘s elbow counters an official way to do a blade job.
.....blade job🙄🙄🙄
Ask Randy Orton...
That's the hard way!
It'll be a bone job or elbow job
@@manlykscorpa i think there is a different name for a bone job...
10:47 Nice touch on having a little nameplate come up for the baby, clarifying that he was indeed a baby
I think if the wrestlers WANT to do it, let them. I remember a Batista interview where he said bleeding was one of the most dramatic ways to tell a story for long and deep feuds
It's not that simple though. Even with the independent contractor loophole, if something goes wrong there then the promotion itself is gonna be the one on the hook.
@@zanewoollett6877 I wouldn’t worry about that, I mean WWE’s lawyers have gotten them out of trouble time and time again
Nurse: "With the adrenaline pumping, there is a risk of a wrestler cutting too deep..."
Eddie Guerrero:
He didn’t go deep as much as he hit a vein too hard which resulted in the bleeding he did. Especially with his veins being so overused because of the excessive working out and steroid use he had over the years before, an incident like that was bound to happen.
Glad I wasn't the only one who thought of Eddie when the nurse mentioned cutting too deep
Are u talking about the time he got hit with the chair cause I thought the exact thing like dam he musta hit a vein
The worst blade job I remember was Eddie Guerrero vs. JBL. Eddie cut himself way too deep and the blood didn't stop flowing. I still get sick when I think about it.
Yeah. He accidentally nicked an artery, and his entire face and chest went completely crimson within seconds. It was so bad that Eddie passed out backstage and required a blood transfusion. I also believe that PPV was rated TV-MA because of that botched blade job
Yeah it makes me sick a bit everytime I see that video.
Blood in wrestling never gets to me because I know it's part of the story and whatnot, that one still gets me everytime, it's awful
The first time I cried watching a wrestling match
@Colin Killian tough guy here 😂
Seeing the Undertaker bleed was always upsetting to me as a kid since it was like being reminded your gods can be killed.
Well he's a demon anyways so good riddance
He never made sense as a face....undead guy with a magic urn always talking about death and creatures of the night?
That's why we liked Ministry Taker, he finally made sense.
In my opinion Blading should be a "special event" kind of thing. If you do it every week it gets dull but only on some ppvs it might elevate the stakes or the intensity of the match
for me it should never happen. Look at Becky Lynch bleeding nose. Look at Finn Balor matches lately, the guy is so invested he gets cut open. That is what brings intensity, blading brings nothing imo.
To me head chair shots, blading and piledrivers should be done every blue moon it adds a little something every once in awhile..
Blazing should be saved for the heated, hatred feuds
Blazing should only be saved for feuds with Matt Riddle. But I know what you mean!
RVD approves this comment
@@morningstar577 lol
should of have McIntyre and Orton use some blood during their matches
@@partsFUNknown *Riddle
I think the key is moderation. Blading is a way to enhance the story, no one will deny that but when does the performer's safety get in the way of the quality of the product? People complain that the product is watered down but also complained about the chairshots, piledrivers and blading being too extreme for wrestling. Not every show/feud needs blood but feuds like Drew vs Orton come along once, maybe twice a year where a heated feud should showcase a bit of the stuff to truly capture the story.
Even the Roman feud currently if it hasn’t already will need a match where someone bleeds.
I'll tell you why blading stopped because of HIV- AIDS in South Carolina if a drop of blood gets on the mat the state comm stops the match and makes the promoter to get bleach hot soapy water and wash the changes which means the fat lady has sung cause you can't work in a wet ring
Cody rhodes liked this.
He loves his blood and guts.
thank god his brother and dad are nothing like that ..........
@@partsFUNknown Particularly his...
@@fillgollinsdergroarticheme8442 Totally agree I can't remember seen either bleed.
The whole 'Rhodes' family liked this.
Ric flair wrote this right?
He should've been a consultant.
“blood. His blood. Blood. Blood. Blood. And bits of sick.”
Will always upvote a Garth Marenghi reference.
@@comradet0m I see you too are a man of culture.
"I'll get a mop."
well time to fetch the mop and bucket...
Sidenote: I was not expecting *THAT VOICE* to come out of *Billy Graham*
It's always a trip to hear graham
He sounds adorable
It's like how you expect a deeper voice out of the unholy offspring of a Grizzly Bear and a Killer Whale, but Lesnar has a voice of a 13 year old
@@kaitlyngarner740 *im a white boy and im jacked*
His voice tickles my back nerves.
Despite knowing the risks, a splash of red can really enhance a match or moment.
Stone Cold at Wrestlemania 13, HBK at Bad Blodd...
I've been watching wrestling for ages and still don't know much about its early history and those pioneers. Thank you for shining a scope upon it.
Wrestlers: Don’t get healthcare
Also wrestlers: Purposefully slice their own head open
haha and that's far from the craziest/stupidest shit they do.
@@higler. Fans do even crazier things lol
This is true but in the heyday the butcher and shiek would do it I'm glad I never had to work with either one of them
Wasn't healthcare wasn't an option for most of them.
Name one wrestler that said don't get health care. Why is this comment getting any likes lol
"Kinda like the pot calling the kettle Tyler Black" Beautifully written!
All I could think about was Eddie Guerrero vs. JBL. Eddie cut himself to deep, and spilled over a pint of blood in less than an hour. I wouldn’t have remembered who won the match if it wasn’t for this video.
As someone who has both bladed and been opened up the hard way; I'll take blading every time thank you very much. Hard way has too many variables and in my experience are much harder to heal up from. Hard way splits the skin deep and wide, where blading tends to be thin and superficial and heals up within a week.
The WWE literally used to have a match (First Blood) dedicated to wrestlers winning if they made their opponent bleed, so Vince definitely needs to shut it
did you watch the video? WWE stopped using blading years ago
@@cactusjesus9377 which is probably a good thing
Quality quality content laurie.
Great to get away from the current day booking, pushes, burials n news and just going back to one of the roots of wrestling that make you think and introspect.
Thanks Aqueel! Means a lot to me!
@@partsFUNknown 👍🏻
Double juice blood feud matches are something I love even if im not proud of it.
It definitely has its place at the end of a blood feud.
Why be bothered by it. It's something we all have inside us. It's really not a big deal.
@@partsFUNknown Absolutely
I loved the documentary vibe this had. The tone was so immersive
The gap in quality between Laurie's series and EVERY other series on WT/PFN is astonishing. Especially Luke's "actually good" series.
Eddie Guerrero's blade job at Judgment Day 2004 was just... 😱😱😱
"The pot calling the kettle Tyler Black" is such a good line.
Mass transit wasn’t a match, it was damn near attempted murder
The content and editing was superb. Fantastic! Faki Maki Rules!
Nice to know that 90s/early 2000s wrestling wasn't worried about family friendly entertainment while I was growing up 😂😂😂
Great stuff as ever, Laurie. Really bringing out the complexities of the issue.
One minor criticism, though - No mention of Great Muta v Hiroshi Hase. There’s a reason we rate bladejob intensity on the Muta Scale...
If I remember, I think Muta was opened hard way, so it's not a blade job per se...
@@Kay_Sea251 It was a blade job and he just cut way to deep. That's very well know and he has a permanent scar from it. That is the match that created the "muta" scale of blood loss.
@@allanr6132 i call it the Yuta scale now...that kid loves getting colour
I get where blood can help intensity a fued but I think it looses its luster if you use it too much.
With that said, Dustin's blade job was too much. I remember one shot of his head barely off the mat and blood shooting out like a tap. It took me out of the match, kinda scary especially considering before that JR reminded us tons that he is 50 years old.
If you use blood sparingly enough and for the right fued it can work.
Legit just thought about this video and here it is. I’m very excited.
If you enjoy it, please share it around!
Me too
Blading should be treated like chair shots to the dome: Needs to be discussed, all parties sign a waiver, and the promotion is not liable for future damage (like infections stemming from a blade job or brain damage from a dome shot unprotected).
Totally agree.
I'd agree with that
And for christ sake put your hands up for the chair shot *cody*
The problem with this is that it's super hard to prove people weren't coerced. This is an industry where people's careers are buried with a few booking decisions
Blading is an individual choice. If someone is happy to do it and take the risk, I see it as no different as choosing to take a piledriver. That's easily a far more risky thing to do.
Tommy Rich use to do some serious blading back in his Memphis days.
He's the king of blading for sure. Even more so than Ric Flair. Saw Tommy Rich way back in the early 80's when he was the masked "Mr.R" and he was with Buzz & Brett Sawyer against the Road Warriors and Paul Ellering. Was a 6 man street fight match. Was my first time going to a wrestling show and it was awesome!
Blood made some of WWE's brutal match types ex Hell in a Cell interesting to watch. PG bloodless Hell in a Cell matches are boring as hell.
Absolutely love these. This was very well explained. Great work Laurie
This is probably one of the best things I’ve watched in a while
Great job, this was put together fantastically. Keep it going!
When I was younger watching those matches with blood i used to think the blood was fake but when I found out it was real and the wrestlers would cut themselves is actually really sick and dangerous can’t believe they actually did that
Great video, also nurse Karla' baby is so so adorable.
I feel like bleeding in a wrestling match could be used but depending on the feud, and match. Plus doing it ever so often so it feels special (how hell in cell use to be xD)
Brilliant video, Laurie. Top notch stuff ,these Explained videos.
I bladed while watching this video. It busted me open worse than Ric Flair busting himself open during a solo promo.
Love this series please keep doing them!!
Thank you Michael! We'd really appreciate it if you could share it around!
How Rick Flair has blades for 6 decades and is still standing is one of the mysteries of life
Aggressive, bloody matches are one of the main reasons I started to train pro wrestling. It's definitely something great and terrible and I want in.
How the hell did you get through this without bringing up Muta vs Hase?
As a FAN, I understand occasions where it is good. But knowing everything we know, it is DANGEROUS to keep doing it. Undeniably someone has some infection that they will give another and is not good to think about when I'm trying to enjoy and escape everything
Ok funny thought, dont kill me:
1920 Promoter: "Come and see The Bleeding Man!"
2020 AEW Fan: "Come and see This Bleeding Man!"
Somethings change, others stay the same
Wrestling history always repeats itself
It puts fans in the seats
Just got to the intro, been waiting for a week hearing about this video. Thanks Laurie and staff
When I was living in Puerto Rico, blading seemed to be a normal event on the local TV stations. You would often see wrestlers walking around the town and could pick them out by the amount of scarring on their foreheads. I even seen some of the women that were heavy bladers and scarred up.
Kayfabe guys! Kayfabe! Jeeesus!!!
We're exposing the business!
Kayfabe was shot in the head, heart & BOTH KNEES, set on FIRE, then tossed into the GRAND CANYON with dirt dumped on the corpse LOOOOOOONG ago.
@@joshyboy1983 Exactly
Kayfabe died as early as the 1930's. Go watch Abbot and Costello In the Foreign Legion. Namely the opening scene and they are rehearsing a wrestling match. Also no that is not George Steele in the opening scene.
@@joshyboy1983 that New Vegas reference tho
Never thought I'd hear Emile Durkheim referenced in a wrestling video! This is superb stuff Laurie, thank you--wrestling media for the thinking fan. Also, that "The pot calling the kettle Tyler Black" line was hilarious
Now used by the secret service!
So happy you are doing this series again
The old school guys that paved the way were f’n insane. If someone dropped the blade in the audience, the next week, someone would spill claret the hard-way to prove wrestling was real! Nutty bastards! Thank you lads, your sacrifice is massively appreciated! Ha’aaard Way The Lads! 😂
For me, when I was younger and didn't know the details of how wrestling actually worked, I know that I would've had very few issues with blading.
But for me, as I am now, it comes in the same area as many other "extreme" aspects of pro "wrestling", should real thumb tacks be used for wrestling?
Or barbed wire?
Or hard blows to the head with real weapons like chairs, bats and 2x4s?
In my opinion the answer is...partially. There is a place for it, but there's a level of etiquette and professionalism that must go with it.
No one should ever feel pressured or be forced to participate in a match where they are the one being bladed against their will, likewise, under no circumstances should any of this be allowed if anyone has tested positive for bloodborne infections. At that point, it's at best negligence, and at worst assault or in some cases worse.
The hardcore realm of pro wrestling is something that should be handled very carefully and shouldn't be abused, there's a respect that comes with being willing to bleed for your craft, but it must be done in some level of moderation, so that at the end of the day, the people inside and out of the ring can go home knowing that they're safe, at least to a reasonable standard.
So long as it doesn't cross the line of being truly self destructive, where a performer is throwing their career or life away, or being disrespectful, negligent and harmful, so as to cause another performer or even people in the crowd harm or endanger them or cause more risk than what that person signed up for and consented to-
It has it's place in the personas of performers and the plots of stories that'll go down in history.
Some of the barbed wire they use isn’t real you know, but you made a lot of since and I agree.
This was such a fun but uncomfortable, love to see these types of videos. Goddamn.
(Commenting to help you guys on the aglorithm boys!!)
Violence in real life has zero comparison to fake violence.
Couldn't agree more.
Excellent editing, by the way.
This video was brought to you by... a stunt granny!
Wrestling with Wregret!
Gosh darn this essays are so well researched and done. Quality content. Kudos.
This was Awesome. Great Video Laurie.
These analytic videos are rivaling Adam videos.
The last match I went to was january of 1984. In those days there were territories and our territory was the WWF. Our local arena, Boston Garden had wrestling cards every month. The main event was Andre The Giant vs. Big John Studd in a cage match and the blood was flowing. In 1982 I saw champion Bob Backlund in a Texas Death Match vs. Ray "The Crippler" Stevens. That was bloody as well
The opening match that day.was Baron Mikel Sicluna vs. Curt Hennig, who usually was part of a baby face tag team with Eddie Gilbert. I didn't mind the bloody matches stopping as much as i was upset that they buried their most over wrestler Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka and decided to innundate adult fans with cartoon characters and decided that 4 years of going every month was appreciated when the check cleared but I was no longer welcome there because they wanted little kids who would get their parents to buy the toys and cereals that started to come out.they wanted little kids who would follow Hulk Hogan down the aisle or dance in the ring with Junkyard Dog. The WWF wanted their look to reflect the times which is why they all looked ridiculous. They still did it into 1996 when ECW was bringing adults back into watching wrestling. When WWF did the ECW invasion angle you could tell that Mr. McMahon had missed the bus.
I’ve met Abdula The Butcher once at a flea market. I’ve never seen so many thick scars like that before. It’s seriously insane! He was a really nice guy though.
I think I’m for blading in he minority situation in which it is planned before hand, all parties involved are tested leading up to the event, the feud warrants it, and there is a procedure for how to request blading in a match, the a priori steps needed and the post hoc steps needed. Otherwise said, if you’re going to do it, make it rare and extremely safe.
Laurie you did an awesome job on this video, man.
It adds to the storytelling. I would save it for a PPV and limit how many wrestlers blade. One issue that we're seeing now is overuse of blood, specifically in AEW. On a Wed night TV show 3 different wrestlers blade. Save it for PPVs or the end of a fued.
"crimson mask"😂😂😂 Miss you Mr Gordon Solie. Respect!!
Bottom line is, its all conditional & should be up to the talent.
If it can be done safely (sanitised blades, props) during a heated feud & both talents are willing, why not?
You'd imagine all talent on major rosters are tested for hep etc & staff would take extra measures to ensure the cleanliness of the ring/other apparatus. I'm not supporting Abdullah or New Jack's bloodbath style, but some of AEW's recent claret has really added to the angle in my opinion. Its important to prioritise talent safety during these matches, but its not like throwing yourself off a cage or a ladder through a table is significantly safer. Taking into consideration the frequency of neck/back injuries.
I remember seeing hhh bleeding before cactus Jack even hit him with barbed wire at royal rumble 2000 .
I have to wake up, everyday ~ Ric Flair
Love this video. I appreciate all of the wrestletalk content, but this is next level stuff.
Great video! My first memories of bloody wrestling was a match between Dusty Rhodes and Abdullah the Butcher. Madness! Barbed wire wrapping the ropes! There was also Ric Flair vs Hogan, Muta vs some Japanese dude. Gross.
Billy Graham sounds like he's been possessed by Zach Hadel
My favourite "explained" so far! I love the content keep it up :)
The image of Dr Britt Baker D.M.D with the crimson mask will haunt my collective dreams for life.
One of the most vivid visuals was when the bleach blonde dudes would get color. It would soak into their hair and the contrast was so striking. Think Dusty Rhodes, Ric flair, Tommy "wildfire" Rich.
Love this channel, man! Can’t believe I’ve only just found it.
Great video. Though surprised you did talk about the shepherdes. Two of the most bloodiest men I ever saw till Vince turned them in to the Bushwackers.
Getting color during a heated match is ok. Sometimes it’s the icing on the cake for a heated feud. Just not every match, every week.
Teddy (a baby) is the true star of this video. :)
There's a lot of random cuts in the video now, where can I find the full version?
Growing up in Puerto Rico and watching the local hardcore matches live and watching ECW and attitude/ruthless agression era WWE I love blood in wrestling. I think there should always be a place for it however it has to be used in the right ways. Dont blade for the sake of blading. Blade because the storyline and the match itself needs it to take it to that next level. I remember on an episode of Raw Seth Rollings curb stomping Dean Ambrose into a (gimmicked) concrete block yet Dean dint bleed. That shit made no sense, in those rare instances blood is necesary imo
This is such an interesting and insightful video. Thank you all for all your efforts in creating such fantastic content!
Finally someone put a vid out on blading... also at 5:16, I totally forgot about greg (the hammer) valentine wrestled under the name of Johnny Fargo.. Damn, Im getting old too !!
Another excellent episode in the 'Explained' series. Well done Laurie! I absolutely love these episodes.
Blaring when used properly can elevate the storytelling of a match spectacularly but there are tons of risks with it so if it were to be completely removed I wouldn’t be against it
The first blade job I ever saw on TV was when Larry hit Bruno with the chair during his infamous heel turn. I suspect WWE received a lot of heat from their TV stations and subsequently started to put up a big red "X" on the screen. For example, when Blackjack Mulligan was brought in as a monster heel to battle Andre, he would use his claw hold busting open jobbers as a way to get him over.
0:35 Ha ha ha! Love the Garth Marenghi reference 😆
Great documentary! Made me a subscriber!👍
This was very engaging content. Looking forward to more!
Its ultimately a story telling tool and shouldnt be used but sparingly...like this roman\ jey angle when it blows off or for roman to get heat would make sense...but i cant blame anyone for not wanting to do it.
P.S. Karla was awesome
I love that the medical professional even said yes to blading. Blood is the cherry on top of an intense rivalry or sells the violence of an intense match.
Adam Blampied said it once best in one of his previous videos: „Blood shows the endurance of a Wrestler and endure they did“.
Blood should be shown in matches that have a lot going on, either in-ring wise or story. For instance, Shawn Michaels vs Triple H in their iconic 3 stages of hell match was already an absolute masterpiece, but with the added blood, viewers became so much more invested and the match felt so much more personal.
Just discovered your channel, I love it! ❤
Thanks for the hard work and research!
Stay Safe, Happy Thanksgiving. 👍
Amazing job Laurie! 🤘🏻
I’ve been to numerous wwe tv tapings in the past and they have layers of canvas that they change out after each match in between the commercials unless, of course, they have to do a spot like Gargano v Ciampa where they rip up the ring mat