WOW - EP439 - A Book About Art
The Work Of Wrestling
Tim Kail has an announcement...he's writing a book! Inspired by J.J. McGee's Fight Forever: A Ballad of Kevin and Sami, Tim is endeavoring to distill his decade's long analysis of pro-wrestling into a single project. This book, The Work Of Wrestling: A Book About Art, will be a combination of his best writing with all new writing on the subject of wrestling being an art. Follow on the social media gimmicks @WorkOfWrestling to stay tuned on his progress. Give the podcast a five star rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Email questions, thoughts, or suggestions to wrestlingworks@gmail.com.
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WOW - EP438 - J.J. McGee, Author of Fight Forever: The Ballad Of Kevin and Sami
The Work Of Wrestling
This week host Tim Kail is joined by renowned author J.J. McGee (MithGifs) to discuss their book Fight Forever: The Ballad of Kevin and Sami, a detailed history of two of pro-wrestling's greatest...ahem...the two greatest wrestlers of all time. Tim and J.J. discuss how this project came to be, J.J.'s writing practice, the most surprising piece of research they found, interviewing Kevin and Sami for the book, chronicling the history of these two modernday folk heroes, Kevin and Sami's legendary obsession with detail, their ability to weave macro and micro narratives into their matches, how the...
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WOW - EP437 - Burn Me To The Ground
The Work Of Wrestling
This week Tim Kail opens up about his increased passion for professional wrestling and what that means for his mental state. He discusses Fight Forever: The Ballad of Kevin and Sami by JJ McGee and how it uncorked his imagination as he spent three days cat sitting in an apartment overlooking The Hudson River.
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WOW - EP436 - MLK
The Work Of Wrestling
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day host Tim Kail examines the internet meme that transformed MLK into a WWE heel. Tim shares his initial reactions to these A.I. videos followed by a deeper examination of the history of racism in America.
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WOW - EP435 - SEX!
The Work Of Wrestling
Work Of Wrestling host Tim Kail has had an idea for an episode of the pod for the past ten years, but he could never figure out a way to bring it to life. Well he's finally done it! In this episode he explores the connection between pro-wrestling and sex, how they follow parallel narrative paths. His goal is to help listeners better appreciate good wrestling (and good sex). This episode was originally a blog on the alternative social media site Lavish Made, https://lavishmade.com. Follow Tim on social media @WorkOfWrestling and give the podcast a five star rating and review.
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WOW - EP434 - We Did Great Things
The Work Of Wrestling
It's the 2026 Season Premiere! This week, host Tim Kail examines how the priorities and values of a society are revealed through the art that society produces. He discusses the creative gulf between WWE and AEW, and how the latter has a discernible worldview. Follow on social media @WorkOfWrestling.
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WOW - EP433 - Growing Up
The Work Of Wrestling
Today's episode is a story submitted by Liam Lambert, @crowtagonist on Instagram. Liam shares a coming of age tale about creating his own backyard wrestling federation in the suburbs of Lincolnshire. It's a heartwarming story about pro-wrestling's ability to forge strong bonds among people, even as they grow up and move apart. To submit your story go to The Work Of Wrestling's Facebook page and click on the pinned post. That will take you to a Google form you can fill out. Thank you for your listenership in 2025.
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WOW - EP432 - The Final Straw
The Work Of Wrestling
Tim Kail reacts to Mick Foley severing ties with WWE in the wake of President Trump's disparaging remarks on Rob Reiner. Tim reads Mick's original social media post on the matter, offers up some thoughts of his own, and then shares a pivotal decision he's made about what he's willing to cover in pro-wrestling in 2026.
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I Will Not Talk About Backstage Segments For One Year
The Work Of Wrestling
I've talked about my hatred of backstage segments for twenty years (ten of those on my podcast). They look terrible, they elicit terrible performances, and they are conceptually dubious. Over the past decade I've attempted myriad ways to dissect them and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt they're an antiquated, character-killing device that does nothing but get wrestlers "under". I've talked and written so much about them that it's become something of an inside joke with my listeners (that and Seth Rollins' pants). At this point, my listeners know I despise back stage...
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WOW - EP431 - Farewell John Cena w/Al Monelli
The Work Of Wrestling
Host Tim Kail is joined by longtime friend and fan-favorite guest Alexander Monelli to discuss John Cena's last match at Saturday Night's Main Event. First, Tim & Al unload on annoying pro-wrestling fans for inserting themselves into Cena's final moments. Then they discuss Cena's greatest promos and matches. Finally, they examine what John Cena and the other greatest of all-time have in common. Follow Al on social media @monellifilms and subscribe to his : https://www.youtube.com/@monellifilms
info_outlineTim Kail has an announcement...he's writing a book! Inspired by J.J. McGee's Fight Forever: A Ballad of Kevin and Sami, Tim is endeavoring to distill his decade's long analysis of pro-wrestling into a single project. This book, The Work Of Wrestling: A Book About Art, will be a combination of his best writing with all new writing on the subject of wrestling being an art.
Follow on the social media gimmicks @WorkOfWrestling to stay tuned on his progress.
Give the podcast a five star rating and review on Apple Podcasts.
Email questions, thoughts, or suggestions to wrestlingworks@gmail.com.