Full Description
An innovative poetic interrogation of wrestling, queerness, and staying true to oneself
Quinn Carver Johnson's debut collection, The Perfect Bastard, follows its titular protagonist, a nonbinary and queer professional wrestler, as they travel across Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri, working for a booker known as the Puppeteer. Inspired by their idol Adrian Street, the Perfect Bastard strives to positively represent queerness and resist the Puppeteer's stereotypical and demeaning kayfabe. In the ring, they face off against the likes of champion Jack Holiday and the First Crusher, but their most important battles, against the Puppeteer, take place behind the scenes. They must choose between person and persona, authenticity and humiliating hype, if they want to succeed in the industry.
When offered success on the grandest scale—the championship belt—in exchange for mocking their own queerness, the Perfect Bastard questions their path: Will they betray their identity to achieve their dream, or will they walk away from the world of professional wrestling—a world that refuses to make a genuine, healthy space for them?
Contents
A Prediction // A Spoiler
The Territory
The Roster
[ACT I]
The Birth of the Perfect Bastard
Before it Sets In
The Beauty of the Backyard Wrestling League
Ode to the Hometown Crowd
Cheap Heat // Action City
The Perfect Bastard Finds a Photograph of Adrian Street & His Father
We Want Tables
Puppet Show
Tanner Hart Burns
Intimacy Suplex
The Perfect Bastard vs. The First Crusher
In the Alley Between Matches, The Sunset Kid Explains the History of Cigarettes
Ode to the Pink Cowboy Hat
[ACT II]
Nightfall // Daybreak or The Last Ride of the Sunset Kid
[ACT III]
The Perfect Bastard Dreams of Gold
During A Radio Interview on the Night of the Ceremony, Someone Calls In & Asks the Perfect Bastard "How Do I Explain to My Children All of This Queer Love You're Flaunting on TV?"
They Say 50% Of Marriages End in Divorce, but 100% Of Pro Wrestling Marriages End in Disaster
Tonight, the Perfect Bastard is the Sacrificial Poet
The Lemon Crusher Breaks Kayfabe on the Radio
The Perfect Bastard vs. The First Crusher II
The Rebirth of the Perfect Bastard
Rose Gold
Jack Holiday Cuts a Promo
Adrian Street Wins the Mid-South Television Championship
In the Fly Trap
Adrian Street Explains the Joke
The Perfect Bastard Calls Their Mom
The Ghost of Gorgeous George Visits the Perfect Bastard
Pipebomb // Pipedream
The Perfect Bastard Speaks to Adrian Street
Supercut
Action City Screwjob
Acknowledgements
-
- 和書
- 寝煙草の危険
