Why Wasn't There A Lot Of Wrestling In GLOW Season 3?

GLOW is a TV series based on wrestling but the third season was lacking in terms of wrestling. Find out why!

GLOW was a revelation in 2017 when the series premiered on Netflix. Based on the fictionalized version of the 1980s fledgling wrestling promotion Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW) the first season told the story of 'Ruth Wilder', an aspiring actress from Los Angeles who auditions for the almost defunct wrestling promotion to make a living. The first season dealt with the clumsiness and the training required to become a wrestler and the second season built on the relationships formed in the first season as well as the infidelity storyline which played an immense role in both season two as well as three.

Watch: The trailer for Glow season 3 on Netflix

Another thing which was supposed to be prevalent in season three of GLOW was the wrestling considering the ladies were becoming experts in the field and some of the most dynamic moments in the show in the past two seasons happened inside the ring. But it was exactly the thing missing from the third season of GLOW; there was little to no wresting in a show about wrestling. Almost everyone feels it was a miss in terms of the third season, not allowing wrestling on the screen for longer periods of time like previous seasons and it is also a point of criticism from most critics.

It was a valid criticism because the show is based on wrestling and not showing wrestling is like asking people to sit through Lord of the Rings and not show dwarfs. But the story really didn’t permit the creators of the show to delve deep into the wrestling aspect of the show. In season three the ladies take the wrestling promotion to Las Vegas to do a daily residency at the fictional Fan-Tan Hotel & Casino. For the first time in their lives, the ladies were provided with steady jobs and fixed pay; they didn’t need to perform on a night in night out basis to survive.

Source: TV Insider

The whole season three is about the girls getting used to the Sin-City and the focus definitely shifted outside of wrestling and on the lives of the girls outside of the ring. GLOW is what it is now because of the relationship between Ruth and Debbie played by Alison Brie and Betty Gilpin; the love-hate relationship between them took center stage in season two and season three is no different with both of them finding a way back to each other after the season one finale. The infidelity and the affair caused a fracture between the relationships of Ruth and 'Debbie' but season three was about the ladies trying to figure out how best to move forward.

Another amazing thing about the show focusing outside of the ring was for the first time the series focused on the supporting characters of the show more. 'Cherry' played by Sydelle Noel is looking to start a family, 'Arthie' and 'Bash' don’t know how to label their relationships and 'Sheila' and 'Jenny' are shedding their ring persona to try and do something outside of their characters. The ladies of the show figure out what they want with their lives, and this makes for a great storytelling moment. Are we disappointed the show was lacking in wrestling? Yes, we are, but it wasn’t totally devoid of the in-ring action.

Source: Muscle & Fitness

In season three, there were some fights inside the ring, and they were some of the highlights of the show as a whole. The problem with the show was the wrestling was a bit repetitive, but this time around they mixed things up to bring in more of a new flavor to the show. Then there was the amazing cliffhanger finale where the girls fought in a Christmas theme wrestling match.

The amount of wrestling just wasn’t there to sate the thirst of all the fans, but it was adequate considering the direction the show’s creators Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch decided to take it in. It is also understandable the show trying to tell the story of the ladies instead of just pounding and slamming each other to the mat. The character moments in the show were brilliant, and even though we wanted more fights from the show, it feels what was shown was enough to tell the story of the ladies.

Source: Creative Screenwriting

Netflix recently canned a beloved fan-favorite show The OA after only two seasons so it will be interesting to see whether the streaming giant decide to give GLOW another run at the small screen. With the cliffhanger ending the show should come back and the way the characters were progressing, we want them to come back, but it all depends on the people at Netflix who are trying to work towards more tentpole heavy series year-round. The competition is heating up, and with Amazon bringing Lord of the Rings to the small screen, GLOW doesn’t exactly feel like a show which can compete with the middle earth saga. We hope GLOW gets a fourth season, but every show at Netflix not named Stranger Things is touch and go at this point.