Bread and Circuses

I've just returned from watching Wrestlemania. As I suspected, it was a brilliant spectacle with all the comic book/bad soap twists and resolutions we've come to know and love. In short, it was trashy fun.

So, were the Romans right?

Do we need such spectacle to keep the population happy? In the final bout/fight/contest/scenario thing two men were bleeding heavily from the head having had their heads rammed quite spectacularly into metal fixtures. For our entertainment. Makes you think. Of course, you could argue that this is no different from blockbuster movies like Gladiator or Saving Private Ryan in which there is a large body count for entertainment purposes. In fact Gladiator is all about those ancient Roman spectacles. However, the difference is that all of these events aren't real. Make believe. Two of those guys were going to need stitches. Lots of stitches. If this had been outside my door the local police would have hauled them away (after getting several big burly bobbies first.)

But I enjoyed it. I don't know why. I appreciated the skill some of them showed, especially the cruiser weights; the show was well managed and was entertaining even when there was no-one in the ring and I think that I didn't waste the four and a half hours of my life spent watching it in good company. Go figure.

People are strange.

Tune in again soon, same Blogg time, same Blogg channel.