The World Wrestling Federation¹ is a wild, sexy, and extremely entertaining show to all those who 'get it'. Unfortunately, there are those who don't 'get it' and that's why WWF continues to cause its fair share of controversy.

Most who have watched a WWF broadcast will agree that the spectacle doesn't actually involve an awful lot of wrestling. Instead, viewers are treated to a host of larger-than-life characters involved in over-the-top plots, all intended to keep everyone glued to the edge of their seats, with little attention paid to actual quality of the wrestling. Indeed, the fighting could be described as something akin to a filler - it's there to plug the gaps in-between the main storyline, rather like a car chase sequence does in an action movie.

However, the World Wrestling Federation has proved itself over and over again to be a very popular and hugely succesful business. The high TV ratings, the sell-out live shows, and the fact that a lot of WWF wrestlers are now household names, all seem to show that whateverWWF may be, it's definitely on to a winning formula. Added to which, WWF have successful ventures in many other areas of the commercial world; it produces games, comics, books, magazines, musical compilations, clothes, and many other kinds of merchandise.

The company is lead by Vince MacMahon, who has exploited to the full a philosophy that people like bad guys a lot more than they do the goody-goody hero types; and that extreme and involved storylines are very popular, whereas a few interviews and long, boring matches are not.

There is a general feeling among fans of WWF that those who don't 'get it' should leave those who do, to get on with watching the matches. On the other hand, many people believe that WWF, with its undoubtedly violent content, targets itself inappropriately at younger children. WWF fans argue back that children won't become psychopaths because they watch a little TV. And so the debate rages on, back and forth.

For the time being though, WWF - like it or loathe it - appears to be here to stay.