Yer Mam & Dads favourite grapplers

[Chili]

Had this rattling around for a while, then saw a few mentions of The Bushwhackers being a bit of a Dad's favourite. So here it is. A discussion about the favourites of the non-fan, or semi-paying attention viewer, your parents. My parents weren't actual fans, but wrestling was the only time I got any time with the TV in front room because it had Sky, so they were rather alright in letting me watch as it'd shut me up for a few hours. These were my rents stand-outs from what I can best recall. Sure I'll remember more tidbits with time.

My mum is one of those classic 'thinks its all stupid, and you should grow out of it', but give her something simple to follow and she'll be begrudgingly dragged into it and start vocally making comments whilst looking up from her gossip mag like a big lovely mark. Both my rents had great taste as a kid with their shared favourites. Both had their national pride for Davey Boy, and both appreciated Bret Hart and found him just very likeable, the ultimate pro. By the attitude era and shortly before my parents split, Stone Cold was a weekly delight for them. Austin must have been like that for lots of parents, a character you could really enjoy for the sheer charisma of him, and weekly fucking Vince over. 

My mums favourites? Well she's one for supporting whoever she has a bit of a crush on, so Stone Cold, The Rock and especially Dave Batista got a lot of vocal support from her. During the Monday Night Wars, my mum wasn't really in-tune with knowing too much about WCW, though she knew a few faces, probably mostly the ex-WWF guys and Sting. Though she used to specifically request to keep WCW on if a Goldberg match aired. My mum LOVED Goldberg squash matches, because she fancied him, they were short and he looked the business. She had ones she very much disliked vocally, which shown how good they were at being heels. Scott Steiner because he was on all the steroids, Triple H irritated her because he cheated all the time, Shawn Michaels was a cocky whinger, Chris Jericho circa WCW 1998 did her head in and she's never EEEEVVVVERRRR taken to him since. When she clocked a bit of AEW in 2019 when my sister was watching Jungle Boy have the 10 minute challenge against Jericho, my mum starting piping up hoping Jericho would get shown up. 'I've just never bloody liked him.' A lovely touch about my Mum, is if she first saw you as a heel, if your turned face, she'd never be fully on board, because they used to be a bastard, and there was always that hint that they were after something and couldn't be trusted. She always carked about that.

The old man is a different story. The hot women weren't his thing. Wrestling wasn't about seeing the equivalent of Legs & Co on TOTP for him. He's very much a Big E type of wrestling casual. Give him the big bastards who look the fucking business. When Big Van Vader was on his way into WWF, my dad had come across him in the past (I'm taking a punt he came across him on ITV showing Worldwide in the early 90's), because when the vignettes aired, my Dad was hyped. 'He's an absolute monster, son'. He loved a bit of Leon. He also thought Ahmed Johnson was ace because he just looked double hard as, also Jim Neidhart got a real kick out of him, I think this was because Anvil looked like a rugby player with his build and because he genuinely reminded him of some of the nutters he palled around with when playing Rugby. The Legion of Doom obvs, and on an indie level, the Dutch wrestler Mark Kodiak.

When we went to GPW in the north west circa 2006, My dad made a rare trip up taking me and and my sister. He wasn't massively interested in pleather glad cruiserweights but didn't slag it off. Then Mark Kodiak appeared, a semi-regular top heel for the group. Bald lad, built like Bam Bam Bigelow and wearing a singlet with a Motorhead shirt over the top. He was in a handicap extended squash against two poor enhancement lads. He hit every mental big man move you can throw out, and my Dad ADORED it. Big massive grin of his face when he did the Earthquake splash (this was the same day or just after John Tenta passed). For his finish, Kodiak did an inverted cannon ball off the second rope, an impressive move for a bloke over 300lbs and the old man popped huge. When Kodiak got the three count, my Dad literally began applauding. Even got to chat to him after the show, he really loved Kodiak, it was like watching Alan Partridge meeting Dan. 'Can I shake your hand again?'

So have at it, who did or do your parents love and hate when they're pretending not to pay attention to that fake, gay wrestling?

Edited April 15 by Chili

[Big Bully Busick]

My old man loved Hacksaw 

Always had him in fits of laughter 

 

Other than that they were all shite except the Bushwhackers 

 

Mum used to love anything involving Miss Elizabeth 

I remember watching Mania 7 alot because being in a 1 TV home, I wouldn't get told as quickly to turn it off because Brookside was starting 

[gmoney]

My mum and dad have never shown anything but overt hostility to wrestling, the very idea of them having a favourite is incomprehensible. If they were in the room for any length of time, it had to go off. 

My mate's mum fancied Jake Roberts though, who happened to look a bit like my mate's dad, so that worked out well. She thought The Model was hilarious as well. 

[NeverYield]

My mum thought it was mostly stupid and couldlnt stand the OTT nature of it all, but she has a massive respect and admiration for John Cena 

My dad again has never been much of a fan, took me to RAW a few times as a kid, and various local wrestling shows, but he is into his sport and he could get into matches with guys like Lesnar and Kurt Angle who had legitimate sporting backgrounds 

[TheScarlettChad]

My mum loved wrestling and she loved John Cena. Said he reminded her of my dad. Thought heel Jericho was a lunatic in 2008. She mainly fancied Cena and used him to rib me because I was a work rate fuck Cena twat. I see the error of my ways now and love Big Match John. 

[d-d-d-dAz]

My mum has never been the slightest bit interested, but kept me in a steady flow of wrestling t-shirts as a kid and teenager. Including the Mr Ass t-shirt, bizarrely.

When I started seeing my dad as I got a bit older he'd show a bit of interest, and would tape whatever WCW show was shown on terrestrial in the early noughties. He exclusively liked the 'little athletic ones', and his particular favourite was Rey Mysterio.

My parents for as long as i've been alive have hated each other. I think it reached its peak when my dad bought tickets to WCW Nitro in Birmingham and presented me the tickets. A few weeks later, before the show i'd said something terrible to my mum I think and she (rightly) tore the tickets into ribbons.

I presented the pieces to my dad, who fit them back together between reams of sticky tape. Watching him, simmering with resentment, presenting what can only be described as shoddily arranged ticket jigsaws in tape to a bemused security guard is when I realised they'd never, ever get along.

P.s. if this story sounds like my mum is the bad guy, nothing could be further from the truth. She's #1. I was just a loathsome teenager, and she didn't suffer fools.

Edited April 15 by d-d-d-dAz

[JLM]

Jody Fleisch is by far my mum's most positively reviewed wrestler. She saw him on a couple of UK indy shows she took me to before I was allowed to go on my own and she was genuinely blown away his dazzling high spottery, to the point where she'd ask if he was on the card any time I mentioned going afterwards. 

WWF-wise she liked Ken Shamrock and Owen Hart, because when she took me to Mayhem in Manchester they were the only two wrestlers who did anything she found even remotely engaging. 

She despises Jerry Lawler. Absolutely cannot stand the man. She calls him "LOOK-AT-THIS!!!" because he shrieked that a lot during the attitude era and it was nails on a chalkboard to her. "Is that bastard LOOK AT THIS still a commentator for them?" She asks from time to time. 

 

Edited April 15 by JLM

[TheScarlettChad]

Mine hated JBL for being fat. That was hysterical. She just never got on with him, couldn't understand why a guy with man tits was a wrestler. She never saw Stan Hansen obviously.

[Gus Mears]

I've shared this before but when my old man took me to see a WWE house show in Cardiff and the only thing he popped at was Viscera pretending to shag two of the Spirit Squad. 

My mum hated all of them. I honestly think she would have been prouder if I'd taken up dogging as a hobby when I started training.

I watched one of the Bad Blood shows on DVD with my dearly missed and very deaf grandad in about 2004/5 and he kept referring to Kane as 'Ken' and roaring with laughter as he had proceeded to have an awful match with Big Show or someone. Was completely unmoved at everything else. 

[RoryFice]

Started watching WWF in 1993.

Tatanka was my dad's favourite. I'm honestly not sure why, but when he's talking with my brother and I or my nephew about wrestling he'll still sometimes do the Tatanka war cry from his entrance music/matches etc. Dad used to go and see old style wrestling in Scotland back in the 1970s now and then as well.

Razor Ramon was mum's favourite at first but he was very quickly usurped by Bret Hart. To this day mum insists that Bret was cheated out of the WWF title. Not by Vince McMahon, but by Gorilla Monsoon who "changed the rules after the match started" at Wrestlemania XII.

[ReturnOfTheMack]

I seem to remember my mam had a Big Boss Man Tshirt. And my aunty had an LOD  one.

[TheBurningRed]

My parents hated wrestling. But my mum fancy Shane McMahon and Stone Cold.

One of her carers spoke to me not long about wrestling. She absolutely loves Kerry Von Erich and watches his matches repeatedly with her grandson. She won’t watch anything new. Just him. 

[CavemanLynn]

My dad thought it was all tosh, but fucking LOVED Kronik obliterating cruiserweights on Nitro on German TV via the dodgy decoder he got at a car boot.

Mum liked Sting and Big Kev, for different reasons.

Edited April 15 by CavemanLynn

[davertfnewman]

My dad was a fan of Marty Jones from World of Sport.

Mom fancied Kerry Von Erich and Roddy Piper, which was funny because she was more into guys who looked like Liam Cunningham.

My nan (dad's mom) got really invested in the Macho/Crush feud.

My gran (mom's mom) fancied both Brian Pillman and Cactus Jack.

I credit my mom with providing the light bulb moment for me with wrestling when we started watching in 1991. She made a remark that even though Bobby Heenan was supposed to be the bad guy, he was still pretty funny. Made me realise at nine that it's a case of being able to like the bad guys as well as the good guys because Bobby obviously was one of the very best.

[TheScarlettChad]

2 minutes ago, CavemanLynn said:

My dad thought it was all tosh, but fucking LOVED Kronik obliterating cruiserweights on Nitro on German TV via the dodgy decoder he got at a car boot.

Mum liked Sting and Big Kev, for different reasons.

Mine thought it was funny that Kevin Nash was nicknamed Big Sexy.