The Limey Bastard Column, the Fans, and the Groups

Robert Florence, aka The Limey Bastard, writes a column for wrestlingsucks.com, which is a place that I frequently visit, because I like the site's humorous and sometimes brash take on the business today. Anyhow, The Limey Bastard is an Undertaker fan, and his nineteenth column, written after the Taker's return, has been ruffling a few feathers, due to his examination of the Taker's fanbase and the reaction to his return, and and I agree with him for the most part.

I'm not going to mince words. The Undertaker has the most diverse (and strangest, to an extent) following in wrestling. Not only do you have your run-of-the-mill fans, but he has one of the largest female fanbases, and add a good smattering of your wannabe goths and crazies for good measure. Some (underlined and italicized for emphasis) of these people are attracted to the very dark, very supernatural, very cartoonish, very dead Undertaker, because he was so over-the-top and the king of drama, which they seem to latch onto and provides good fodder for their fantasies. And, you don't have to venture too far into the UT website culture to see this.

And for those who can't separate the fantasy and reality, Calaway is supposed to be the Lord of Darkness on and off screen, which is probably why most of those who fall in the above category are shitting a brick because he's become so -real- and that reality doesn't play well for their fantasies. They treat the Taker like their Gothic God. And, like Robert Florence, I wonder what they'll do now since Taker's forgone all of this and re-invented himself completely? Will they latch on to the next best thing that feeds this appetite for supernatural? Right now, if I had to judge, it would be Vampiro, so if you see shitloads of Vampiro sites and fanfic popping up, you'll know why.

Unfortunately all Undertaker fans are lumped into this category: obsessed, psychotic, delusional, gothic assholes. That's why when someone finds out I'm a fan of the Taker, they're shocked as shit, because I sure as hell don't look or act the part. I guess they expect me to be walking around, wearing black nightgowns, with dyed black hair and black makeup, preaching about my Lord of Darkness and waiting for the next sacrifice, or some shit like that.

And, when people have visited my site, they're also surprised. I don't worship the Lord of Darkness, nor write poems and fanfic about very graphic sexual fantasies, or anything for that matter. And, I'm not dogging on fanfic; while some of it's absolute shit and has no place whatsoever on the Internet, where everyone can see it, I can think of some that is well-written, tells a story, and I've liked. I don't overly obsess about his physical appearance, even though he's a quite handsome fellow. I look at Calaway and his Undertaker character in a more professional light, or at least try to, except for a couple places where I've let the hormones rage a bit. I also don't think of him in god-like terms, either. Yes, he's my favorite, but I'll also admit that are angles he's been in that I haven't liked, matches where he's been less than great, and I also will dog on him a bit at times, in a humorous kind of way. And, I've received many e-mails from people saying how they like that my site's like a breath of fresh air, so I guess I'm doing something right.

And, while I'm on this whole topic of fans, I'm also going to address the monkier attached to these fans, and which most of them embrace. I don't consider myself a "Creature of the Night". Maybe when I was 12, when it was a fitting phrase that went well with the Undertaker of old, but not now. That phrase is archaic, and has been for a long time now, since the Undertaker has been taking such a different path. Maybe the reason it's still used is that some people deep-down still yearn for the old days and they hope that one day he'll show up with the urn, duster, hat, ascot, spats, and put people in body bags?

Yet, there are people out there who try to force it on you, saying that you have to be a Creature if you're an Undertaker fan. One person I chat with was attacked for stating that she wasn't in ut.net. I'm also not a Bride, ATM (which I recently found out means "Addicted To Mark"), or any of the other labels affixed to Taker fans. A problem I have with these connotations is they automatically attach a stigma upon you and the fact that some in these "groups" are very introverted and have a penchant for forming cliques and taking their affiliations way too seriously.

Now, before I get shitloads of hate mail from any of the people who are members of the groups listed above, I have something else to make clear. I have chatted with Creatures, ATMs, Brides, along with others affiliated with other little segments of the UT fanbase. And, I have encountered nice people, who take their affiliation just as a little group where people join due to like intrerests, get to know each other, converse, and maybe make a friend or two, which I think is great. These folks have been very open-minded and don't care who you are, just as long as you're a nice person. And, for the ultimate stroke of irony, I am an active participant in a chat in one of the UT sub- fan groups. But, the one thing that sets them far, far apart from a lot of other places is the open-mindedness and intelligence of their members. And, they are a group, but they don't insult me just because I'm not a member.

Now, let me get back on topic. If I would have to call myself anything, I'd rather consider myself a fan, plain and simple. I'm a fan of The Undertaker, other wrestlers besides Taker, and professional wrestling as a whole. I've loved it since I was 4 or 5, and grew up in watching the WWF in the pre-Undertaker era. And, I'll be watching post-Undertaker, too, unlike some who say that when he's gone they're gone. Hell, there are too many good guys out there, busting their asses, to turn away from it.