My Stance On AEW Has Changed For The Better
In 2019, when All Elite Wrestling first launched there was a general excitement in the air for something new in pro wrestling. Since 2001, when WWE purchased WCW, no one has made a run at WWE’s numbers. Impact Wrestling came close in the early 2010’s, but they just didn’t have the financially stability to keep that momentum. When Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega, Adam Page and The Young Bucks decided to start their own promotion, my thought was how are they going to pull it off? Enter Tony Khan, who is the son of one of the wealthiest men in the United States. Shahid Khan owns the Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham F.C. It all started coming together and they started adding familiar faces like Chris Jericho and PAC. Their first official pay-per-view was All out on August 31st, 2019 and it was great, and then they started TV. It was when they started TV that I started to have problems with the company and the product.
It seemed like every week that they were on television, anyone who worked for WWE in the past would just sound bitter and take shots at the company at any chance they had. When I watch a pro wrestling, I watch it to see what they can do different and how they are focusing on making themselves. I also felt and still feel The Elite need to take a step back from being pro wrestlers and onscreen characters. There have been times that The Elite were doing what Triple H did in the early and mid-2000s. My other issue was how there were too many factions. Currently, there is the Inner Circle, The Pinnacle, The Dark Order, The Nightmare Family, and The Hardy Family. It’s very hard to grow as an individual when you are tied to a faction for a lengthy period of time. My other issue has been the use of tag teams. AEW may have the greatest tag team division on the planet. They have the Lucha Brothers, Jurassic Express, Private Party, FTR, 2.0, Proud & Powerful, The Varsity Blondes, and more. I feel like some of these tag teams get lost in the shuffle and have no direction.
While I have had problems with AEW’s product at times, something happened earlier this year in 2021 that started to change my stance on AEW. The Forbidden Door that Tony Khan has often referred to has been one of the greatest to happen to the pro wrestling history in quite some time. AEW is currently working with Impact Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling, National Wrestling Alliance and AAA Lucha in Mexico. All of these companies are currently interchanging talent, which makes for great television because you never know who is going to show up. With how big AEW’s roster is getting, it would be wise for them to loan their talent out to the companies to they’re working with so they can continue to get TV time and have their dream matches they would like to have and the fans would like to see. The Forbidden Door is something that should continue to happen and be a long-term thing.
One of the biggest complaints I read from is that AEW is starting use too many “EX-WWE” talent. Here’s what you have to understand. Jon Moxley, Malaki Black, Miro, the late Brodie Lee and others that are possibly coming weren’t happy in WWE. Miro and Moxley have thrived in AEW and are allowed to be more of themselves then they were in WWE. Fans also seem to forget that Moxley, Black, Andrade, and PAC were major stars internationally and well known on the independent scene long before the signed a WWE contract. They are also being allowed to work in other promotions when they’re not working in AEW, which is great for AEW and the independent promotions that benefit from a talent being there. There is also this toxic belief among fans that if you go to AEW from WWE, you failed in your time in WWE. That is some of most illogical and nonsensical thinking that anyone could have. At this point, I’m perfectly okay with “ex-WWE” talent coming to AEW as long as they are going to be used differently in AEW, and they have the opportunity to strive and thrive in the company.
As much as I love NXT, the one thing AEW does really well is give independent talent who may not be well known a chance to shine and get exposure they may have not gotten otherwise. For example, being a pro wrestling fan from Michigan, I love Impact Wrestling because they showcase the likes of Jake Something and Rohit Raju. I have a personal connection to the show because I’ve watched them grow through the Michigan Independent Wrestling Scene. Within the last few months, talents like Travis Titan, Jason Hotch, and Ren Jones have appeared on AEW Dark and Dark Elevation. I felt connected to those specific episodes because I’ve watched them all perform and grow right in front of me. It also allows these talents to go back to their home promotions and have more value, which is better for the independent scene and industry as a whole. What AEW is doing for the independent scene is truly best for business.
All Elite Wrestling is still in its infancy and with anything new they will have growing pains and learning curves. I do believe AEW is on the right track with they are doing. Tony Khan said this on Twitter the other day and it really stuck out to me. “Professional wrestling is an art form. You don’t create great artists by training them all to paint by numbers in the same way.” With that mindset and attitude, I believe great things in the future for AEW. My advice to pro wrestling fans that have never watched AEW is to give it a chance and be open minded. They have something for everyone to enjoy. Different characters, styles, and personalities. We haven’t had colorful characters and personalities in a long time so embrace it and enjoy it. My stance on AEW has changed and it’s for the positive. Through AEW, Impact, and NJPW, I’m starting to love professional wrestling again.
