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is plenty good
MTV reality series on becoming a WWF grappler
By Andrew Wallenstein
Respect isn't something the "sport" of professional wrestling earns easily, but that could change with MTV's absorbing new reality series "Tough Enough" (Thursdays, 10-10:30 p.m. ET, began June 21).
At first blush, the art of creating fake violence may not seem worthy of examination.
But "Tough," which was produced in conjunction with Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation, highlights the surprising amounts of mental discipline and physical rigor it takes to succeed in the ring.
Think Fox's "Boot Camp" meets MTV's "The Real World."
Eight men and five women, culled from 4,000 audition tapes submitted by aspiring wrestlers all over the country, live and train together for 13 episodes.
They are competing for two WWF contracts, one for each gender. There are cameos aplenty from WWF stars, many of who are intimately involved in the training process.
If anything, "Tough" serves as potent proof of the stranglehold wrestling has on the popular imaginations of young adults in America.
To witness twentysomething fans hell-bent on becoming wrestlers the way previous generations regarded rock stars or "real" athletes shows just how high in the cultural pantheon the WWF resides.
Of course, that means "Tough" has to weed out its fair share of wackos in the opening episode, which featured 230 quarter-finalists at an audition in New York.
Putting aside the mental deficiencies of many of the aspirants, their blissful ignorance of their poor physical shape is hysterical; human beanpoles and blobs who can barely survive a few push-ups are under the grand delusion they can somehow tangle with muscle-bound behemoths.
As they watch the candidates struggle though simple exercises, many of the wrestlers on hand for the auditions express incredulity bordering on outrage.
At one point, WWF star Tazz lambastes one particularly obnoxious applicant who resembles the kid in the Charles Atlas advertisement getting sand kicked in his face.
Unfazed by the tongue lashing, the kid explains to the camera that he can't wait to tell his friends that Tazz chewed him out, as if it were a badge of honor.
The wrestlers aren't any kinder to the 13 finalists.
Whether they are being threatened to have their butts kicked or experiencing timeless training techniques like wrestling in pig slop, the looks on their faces range from sheer terror to exhaustion.
One nicer touch on "Tough" is how the cameras constantly catch them downing aspirin and applying ice packs to their sore spots.
Strangely enough, they are in pain before they even start actually fighting with each other.
"Tough" takes viewers through the basics of professional wrestling, which include the not-so-simple art of falling on the canvas as realistically as possible. The finalists literally throw themselves to the floor in different positions hundreds of times. Even throwing a fake punch is much harder than it looks.
One aspect of wrestling "Tough" never directly addresses in its first few episodes is the never-ending controversy regarding the sometimes dangerous influence wrestlers have on children who imitate them.
But in an unintentional way, "Tough" drains that influence by laying bare the choreography required to make the fighting appear real. If the WWF really wants to shake its bad reputation, McMahon should do more of these peeks behind the curtain, which may be far more powerful than any "don't try this at home" disclaimer.
July 2, 2001 © 2001 Media Life
-Andrew Wallenstein is the television critic for Media Life.
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