Welcome back to Reading Wrestling, your encyclopedia on the art of pro wrestling. Today’s entry takes us to a special role in wrestling, the impish, the sly, the mischievous provocateurs. Contemporary wrestling narratives often build to a flammable situation and just require someone to bring a match to set it all off. Enter these masters of disaster. Whether the instigator of conflict is a ruthless heel, a wronged fan-favorite looking to dole out comeuppance, or just a troll in it for the fun of it, these figures are the catalyst for chaos. Put another way, some feuds build to their own boiling points, such as the explosion of the Mega Powers; others need a little help. The provocateurs can be managers, like Jimmy Hart or Bobby “The Brain” Heenan, rogue referees, as when Vince McMahon appointed Mike Tyson a ref, or comic relief figures, as when R-Truth’s 24/7 Title Express pulls into the station. All in all, someone’s gotta get this party started, and you can always count on your friendly neighborhood provocateur to kick it all off. We hope today’s conversation on this topic will provoke a reaction. 

We start off discussing the role of the provocateur in wrestling, and somehow we ended up on the topic of...clowns? Starting with Doink the Clown, we discuss the role of the clown in causing trouble and generally unsettling order, either in a heelish delight for discomfort or a good-natured, fun romp. The topic of clowns digs up some uneasy childhood memories from the wrestler-talkers, and we take a diversion into some unexpected territory...

The topic eventually comes back around to a meta-point about wrestling itself being a medium that trolls high art. Even in its scriptedness and beckoning for people to chide fans with "But you know it's not real, ROIGHT?! [sic; Philadelphia pronunciation intentional]," wrestling makes a mockery of reality, much to the chagrin of its opponents. And that mockery is what makes it such a powerful medium. 

If someone didn't start none, there wouldn't be none. So the role of the provocateur is crucial in setting off the feuds that shape wrestling's story lines. So come and hang out for another episode of Reading Wrestling, and write in to tell us who your favorite provocateur is!