The Art of Absurd Violence

(An X-Files Feature — CommonX Podcast)

By Ian Primmer | CommonX Podcast

There’s something hypnotic about it. Two competitors, standing inches apart, waiting for impact. The air is still. The crowd leans in. Then — crack. A hand snaps across a face with the sound of a gunshot, chalk dust hanging in the air like smoke.

It’s primal. It’s ridiculous. It’s the most honest sport no one asked for.

Slap fighting — part gladiator spectacle, part internet meme — has become one of the most viral events of the modern era. Born out of bars, backyards, and bad ideas, it’s now televised, sponsored, and streamed to millions. The appeal? Simple: it’s chaos you can measure.

There are no judges arguing over points, no politics, no footwork. Just grit, endurance, and pain tolerance. Whoever stands last, wins. GenX gets it.

We were raised on backyard wrestling, hockey fights, and that stubborn streak of “shake it off.” Slap fights tap into that old-school toughness — the kind that doesn’t hide behind hashtags or filters. But there’s something darker too: maybe we watch because we miss authenticity.

When everything’s staged and sanitized, pain looks real. It’s the absurd poetry of impact. A sport that walks the line between stupidity and art. Between danger and discipline. Between entertainment and existential question:

“How far will someone go just to prove they’re tougher?”

So yeah — it’s dumb. But it’s human.

And maybe that’s why we can’t stop watching.