GLOW Takes Audience Back To the ‘80s

GLOW (Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling) is a Netflix comedy show based on the women’s professional wrestling league that existed for four seasons, starting in 1986.

Although the idea for the new show was inspired by the original GLOW, the added humor, drama and satire gives the show an atmosphere of originality. The Netflix show started airing on June 23.

In a recent documentary conducted by Netflix entitled The Story of the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, wrestler Dee Booher said that before GLOW, she was barely allowed to wrestle professionally.

One of the only jobs that Booher was able to get in the ‘80s involved wrestling a bear. That day, she lasted longer in the ring than any man. After that, she was taken more seriously, but not much more.

In the new series, the humor used is a reflection of the sexism occurring at the time. It shows the misogyny of that era, exposing offensive stereotypes used back then.

Director Sam Sylvians (played by Marc Maron) and producer Sebastian Howard (played by Chris Lowell) recruited 15 women. They then created the characters based on the stereotypes their looks displayed.  

For example, in the show, Sylvians and Howard called Cambodian woman, Jenny Chey, played by Ellen Wong, Oriental, and gave her the wrestling title of “Fortune Cookie.” They also named an Indian woman Arthie Premkumar played by Sunita Mani, Arabic, however in the ring she became “Beirut the Mad Bomber.”

After nine episodes of training (in the Netflix’s show), the much-anticipated premiere day arrived as a season finale. The show was a big success with the audience, who cheered enthusiastically throughout the fights. After many surprising turns of events, the first match was won by Tammé Dawson, played by Kia Stevens, who portrayed “The Welfare Queen.”

This was a decision made at the last moment by the director. He explains to the wrestlers that the next episode’s plot would be getting the crown back from her.

Throughout Glow’s 10 episodes, the audience is taken back almost 40 years. Those alive in the 1980s will feel nostalgia while watching the show. Additionally, those who didn’t witness the decade will come out of the show learning many things about it.

The show did not have spectacular fighting scenes. All of the wrestlers casted were beginners to wrestling. This made many of the fight scenes feel real, something the audience appreciated.

Netflix does not reveal the ratings of any of their shows. However, it is apparent that GLOW has become a favorite among watchers with 108,000 followers on Facebook, and 17,000 on Twitter.

Although Netflix has not confirmed a second season, the entertainment corporation will probably do one as it has a plethora of watchers, and because there are still many stories left to tell about the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling.