Sunday, September 24, 2023

terrible rear naked choke, but it wins the fight

Just watch to the end of the brawl, which is when an awkwardly executed rear naked choke is performed while both attacker and victim are standing:

A well-executed rear naked choke is a thing of beauty. This is not the kind of choke that people traditionally think of: it doesn't cut off the victim's air supply; instead, it cuts off blood flow to (and from) the brain. Watch Gina Carano in her younger days as she performs a perfect rear naked choke on a sports reporter:

A proper rear naked choke is done with one of the attacker's arms looping under the victim's jaw, with the attacker's hand resting on his opposite bicep. This creates a V-shaped vise on either side of the victim's neck with which to pinch the carotid artery and stanch the flow of blood to the brain. The crook of the attacker's elbow should ideally be just in front of the victim's trachea (which is why this "choke" doesn't cut off the air supply). The attacker's other arm goes up behind the victim's head, with the attacker's hand pushing the victim's head and neck farther down into the V-shaped vise. Unconsciousness results in five to ten seconds. The victim generally rouses himself a few seconds later, but with a feeling of disorientation. In a street-fight scenario, the victim's few seconds of unconsciousness can be used either to flee the fight or to further pound the shit out of the victim, incapacitating him.

I'm a fan of the TV series "24," but every time Jack Bauer uses the rear naked choke, he executes it "Hollywood style," i.e., unrealistically. Very frustrating to watch, especially when characters in other TV shows and movies have done the choke properly. I assume part of the reason for Bauer's poor execution may be that the episode's director didn't want actor Kiefer Sutherland accidentally hurting someone. Here's a link to a mashup of Jack Bauer's choke-outs. In almost every case, he's got his forearm across the victim's throat, which makes it look more like a backwards guillotine choke than a proper rear naked choke. Wikipedia explains where the term "naked" comes from: "The word 'naked' in this context suggests that, unlike other strangulation techniques found in jujutsu/judo, this hold does not require the use of a keikogi ('gi') or training uniform." (The Wikipedia entry also shows a variation of the choke in which the attacker's forearm lies across the victim's throat. Is that poor execution or a legitimate variation? Should we give Jack Bauer a pass?)



1 comment:

  1. I never realized until recently what a big martial arts fan you are (other than those Karate Kid reviews). As usual, I'm clueless and don't speak the (body) language, but it is fascinating to see the art in the actions.

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