Binging on WWE.com

There’s no doubt that World Wrestling Entertainment is unique. It is a spectacle in and of itself and there’s not a lot of parallelism to it, which is interesting because it’s been such a moneymaker. I’m not talking about wrestling in this respect, but rather a live action event with story lines and stunts and the online content that goes with it. What else could engender such devotion from their fans that’s not a legitimately competitive event? I’m not sure but it’s an interesting question to ask.

The WWE is a phenomenon that’s lasted decades now. Most people know about the bigger than life characters, but hardly anyone knows much about those who play them. Wrestlers are a different breed of person. Party storyteller and part athlete they spend most of their career on the road taking bumps and being away from their families while staying fit at the same time. I’ve listened to enough of them interviewed to know that they end their careers with broken bodies and broken relationships, and the old timers really spent the vast majority of their careers financially struggling until Vince McMahon organized it into what it is today. It’s a cutthroat business, and the competition for airtime and “getting put over” with the crowd is intense. It takes a special breed of person with a unique work ethic and outlook to take it on and I like to hear about their experiences.

Here are a few of the WWE series on their paid platform available to learn about those who play the characters that I found worthwhile. Of course, this takes a monthly subscription to access, but if wrestling is your thing the sheer amount of content is overwhelming. Here is a start.

365

A series chronicling a WWE Superstar’s year following Wrestlemania, “365” is a fairly revealing look into the lives of some of their top performers. Alexa Bliss’s telling of her body dysphoria from her youth and the concussions she suffered during her career was surprising stuff. It was cool seeing her visit the Columbus Zoo though, one of our favorite places to visit. Speaking of a local flavor in this series, one episode chronicles Ricochet, who is a native of Paducah, KY.

Of the remaining, Seth Rollins and AJ Styles are the two to watch if you’re not going to binge the entire series. AJ talking about Japan and his family life, while Seth shows off his coffee shop and discusses his budding romantic relationship with Becky Lynch are included.

Broken Skull Sessions

These are interviews conducted by Stone Cold Steve Austin and they are really good. Listening to Bret Hart talk about the Montreal Screwjob and Goldberg talk about his time at WCW is eye opening and interesting if you are a long time wrestling fan. I’d definitely suggest listening to Stone Cold’s podcast “The Steve Austin Show” where he interviews a multitude of wrestlers including Razor Ramon, Jerry Lawler, Brock Lesnar, John Cena and many, many more as a supplement.

These types of interviews are where you hear about the “behind the scenes” stuff and learn about the lifestyle of these wrestlers. Some of the stories they share are absolutely hilarious and they find a way to make even the mundane stuff interesting. 

Undertaker’s Last Ride

The “Dead Man” crossed into legend territory a long time ago, but his career is coming to an end. This series chronicles his last year leading up to what will be his final Wrestlemania. The consummate professional, Undertaker struggles to come to grips with his inability to perform at his highest level and the setbacks he faces physically after surgeries continue mounting up. Like many, the limelight and the money that comes with it is hard to give up, but the Phenom is finally exiting stage left.

There’s a lot more to watch over on the WWE Network. These are just three that I’ve watched that stuck out among everything they have available. If something else pops up I’ll update the blog with that information.