I was thinking earlier that though I knew wrestling was predetermined when I was a kid, many of the more nuanced ideas around wrestling and, more specifically, discussing wrestling never occurred to me before reading Meltzer and online forums. For instance, it never really occurred to me that a headlock was a chance for the wrestlers to catch their breath and have a rest. I still don't love the term "rest hold", since I think it diminishes the importance of those holds to the psychology of the match, but I'm sure they are used for just that much of the time.

 

It also never occurred to me that a certain type of win/loss meant more than any other. Yeah, DQs and countouts were the shits, but it's common to hear that so-and-so won with a flash pin or a small package, and thus it means less than if they had nailed their finisher. I really never saw finishes through that lens before reading Meltzer. To me, a small package or quick pin still got the 1-2-3 and was a valid measure of outwrestling the opponent.

 

Anyway, what are some things that never occurred to you before 'smarkdom'.

I never realised the Batista Bomb was a terrible move and executed poorly. Then I read the internet.

Spot calling seemed less obvious in my pre-internet fandom, I guess Jesse sold me when he would say he'd like to talk trash on a guy while having him in a chinlock.