Why do I like watching Bearhugs? It’s hard to describe. Let me brainstorm and try to articulate the top 10 reasons:
- Brutality is shocking — As if crusher’s desire to show off his power exceeds compassion for victim’s ribs. Savagery = provocative.
- Close body positions and skin-on-skin physical contact — If they’re faking it, it sure looks chummy, intimate, and fun.
- Implied attraction — If guy gently hugs an acquaintance, and tightly grips a lover, then huge crushing embrace must mean he’s really passionately, devouringly attracted to other guy.
- Slow, patient punishment. No hurry to escape or switch holds. Watchers can feast our eyes, take our time, and really dig it for 5, 6, maybe 9 minutes straight.
- Panic that he can’t breathe — every additional second of constriction increasing cruelty and danger. Like Houdini chained up under water — drives you crazy until he’s safely breathing again.
- Groaning and grunting and gasping noises. Sounds like someone is having too much fun!
- Humiliation factor — Hot-shot hoisted up and crushed like squeeze toy, helpless, obviously much weaker – a degrading show of frailty — Ha HA! Take THAT!
- Tension between wanting to rescue heroic sufferer to end the poor guy’s pain, and wanting to see the graphic scene of crushing go on and on.
- Watching tests of strength and endurance between two determined warriors can be fun — who will be victorious and prove his superiority over the other?
- And probably the biggest reason, that striking look of shock and agony on the faces of the victims as if they can’t believe how tight the other guy can grip, or they are surprised at how painful it feels. Those twisted, cringey facial expressions… Like I said, it’s hard to explain.
Dino Bravo had built up a thick slab of a fireplug body, which he’d use to crush some victim in his arms in nearly every match. When he wrestled Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Dino bearhugged him several times, for several minutes each time. They never do that any more! Seeing Hart’s expressions of awe and agony makes you wonder what’s running through his head. Lucky for you, it turns out I can read minds by looking at images of facial expressions and have posted Bret’s thoughts in the captions below:
Fuck yea, I used to love when my sadistic bodybuilder boyfriend would brutally bear hug me in a match. His lat spread widening and his grip tightening around the small of my back. He would be snorting like a mad bull punishing me, his hot breath on my neck. At the point where I thought I was going to pass out, he would ease up slightly to let me breathe, and start making out, sucking on my tongue, telling me what a tough hot boy I am for enduring the bearhug.