Only in Los Angeles do you find yourself in a hotel lobby waiting for "Jungle Grrrl" and "Jane Blond" to show up. And just as I start to feel like Tarzan's about to swing by, one of the most strikingly beautiful women I've ever seen saunters in. She walks gracefully up to me and with an enormous smile, introduces herself simply as "Jane." This is a female wrestler I ask myself? Jane and I make small talk while we wait for Jungle Grrrl to arrive. As we talk, however, I realize that "Jane" is much more than her "porno" name suggests - she is undoubtedly sexy but also quite intelligent, confident, and self-assured. And when Jungle Grrrl makes her presence known, I sense that many of the women who wrestle for WOW (Women of Wrestling) are, actually, much more talented than they are marketed to be.

Generally speaking, women who professionally wrestle are marketed to be sex symbols. And really it's not difficult to understand why. The majority of wrestling fans are males between the age of 18 and 24 - all eagerly praying that a breast will pop out or an ass will be waved in their face. These hormonally-driven guys secretly fantasize that they are the ones in the ring - or better yet - that they are about to watch their ultimate lesbian-fantasy come to life.

Knowing that women are eroticized in professional wrestling, however, should not detract from seeing these women as pure athletes and talented performers. As I stood by the ring watching several matches of the Ladies Wrestling Federation (LWF) in Burlington, Canada, I could not believe how hard these girls fell and how much work was involved in wrestling. I have to admit, that this was the first time in my life watching live professional wrestling and it was totally exhilarating. These girls were tough and I admired their courage and physical stamina.

But the question remains if women's wrestling featuring strong athletics will actually succeed in this WWF saturated market place. Unfortunately, the WWF and its owner and promoter Vince McMahon have brainwashed the professional wrestling male fan base to believe that the only good thing about women wrestlers is that they accompany men to the ring and have their boobs fall out on pay-per-view.

As I finish my interview with Jungle Grrrl, she looks me straight in the face and says, "never ever hunt what you cannot kill." I can't help but think of this as a metaphor for empowered female wrestlers who are trying to break down male chauvinistic stereotypes. Maybe in two years time, WWF fans will evolve and realize that it's brains and brawn, strength and beauty that make women's wrestling fun to watch. Maybe one day, they'll realize that girls can wrestle just as well as the guys and that the girls really don't need fake boobs and dyed-blonde hair in order to be sexy. And if the guys are still obsessed with bringing their porno fantasies to life, there is always BLOW and apartment wrestlers like Robin who will be happy to entertain them.

While we're waiting, though, Jane Blond and Jungle Grrrl should really think about changing their names.

Michelle Melles
Segment Producer, SexTV