10 Things AEW Stopped Doing That We Really Want To See Again
AEW is still Elite - but is it still All Elite?
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00:00 You know how this goes, as a wrestling fan we can never be happy.
00:04 We give ourselves a few weeks here and there, but otherwise we are looking for things to
00:08 make us mad.
00:09 We're all very, very strange.
00:11 There are some things that do come and go from the world of predetermined grappling,
00:15 however, that can be quite sad, which is exactly what we're going to talk about today.
00:20 So I am Simon from WhatCulture, please do subscribe, and these are 9 things AEW stopped
00:25 doing that we really want to see again.
00:28 9.
00:29 Unorganised Chaos
00:30 Given what we do know about wrestling, why wouldn't you go out of your way to ensure
00:33 some individuals have your back?
00:35 Because if you don't, you're going to get your ass whooped.
00:37 Because of this though, all elite wrestling has fallen into a habit of post-match beatdowns.
00:42 Unless you are a loner, which few are, you will be saved by those you've associated
00:46 yourself with, as that's the whole point.
00:47 There's nothing wrong with this either, but it's like anything, if you do it too
00:51 much you cross the line.
00:52 This wasn't always the way though, as way back in 2019, Tony Khan would measure it a
00:57 bit differently.
00:58 When Hangman Adam Page defeated Sammy Guevara on Dynamite, the cowboy just won to establish
01:03 himself as a threat to the main event scene, leaving the inner circle to enhance their
01:07 feud with the elite later on during a contract signing.
01:09 So they still got their revenge, it just wasn't directly after the match.
01:14 Which also ties into…
01:15 8.
01:16 Realistic Run-ins
01:17 In all walks of wrestling, you are going to get run-ins, be it due to a pal coming
01:20 out to help a buddy, or a super good guy arriving to try and smack a villain in the face.
01:25 If they just leg it out there it does make sense, but that's not what we do is it?
01:30 Instead we hit their entrance music and make sure to milk it for all it's worth.
01:34 Now again, I do love this, but is it realistic?
01:36 Of course not.
01:37 It didn't last long in AEW, but in those early days it did seem to be something they
01:41 were fighting against.
01:42 Again, though, it's important to be realistic, but you know what's better?
01:46 Having a whale of a time.
01:48 7.
01:49 Ending a Program
01:50 Do you remember when Cody Rhodes challenged Chris Jericho for the AEW World title and
01:53 didn't win?
01:54 Well, we drew a line under that story and we moved on.
01:57 It was the same when The Young Bucks defeated FTR or when Hangman Adam Page and Kenny Omega
02:01 broke up.
02:02 We had a very distinct arc that had a start, a middle and an end.
02:05 Lately, however, this has been a bit more wishy-washy.
02:08 It likely comes down to the fact that all elite wrestling is trying to balance so much,
02:11 but the likes of Shida vs. Deeb, Dante Martin vs. Team Taz and pretty much everyone who
02:15 was tangled with Andrade hasn't got much finality at all.
02:19 In fact, a lot of these feuds just stopped and nobody knows why.
02:22 Well, I Guy Black has kind of fallen into this hole too, and while it hasn't stopped
02:25 anyone I've mentioned from growing as a performer, sometimes you just want a full stop so the
02:30 tale can be wrapped up in a nice little package.
02:32 And that doesn't mean you have to go the other way either and run things into the ground,
02:35 but an ending is important, otherwise you're just left wondering.
02:39 Like Shaq, for example.
02:40 And if you know where he went, please let me know.
02:43 6.
02:44 They'll Pop For Anything
02:45 Apparently, it doesn't matter that all elite wrestling has crazy hot crowds, because yes,
02:50 they'll react to anything, and just to summarise, isn't that the whole point?
02:54 No matter what three initials are above the door, you should be aiming to cultivate an
02:57 atmosphere where every single person in attendance wants to make a lot of noise.
03:01 It makes any event ten times more fun.
03:04 If we are being honest though, this run of white hot love may be over.
03:07 It is just the nature of the beast, but as AEW grows, fans are becoming less likely to
03:12 just cheer because it's cool to cheer with a few Dynamites quite noticeably having more
03:15 subdued audiences than we're used to.
03:17 A big reason for this could be the fact the tabling schedule is far more intense as we
03:21 try and record our flagship Wednesday show, as well as dark Elevation and Rampage.
03:26 Given that the main event for the latter can sometimes be happening after almost three
03:29 hours of grappling, it's no wonder some folk may be tired as a long ass day.
03:33 I'm not really sure what the solution would be, because this is done to cut costs, and
03:37 always has to come first.
03:39 5.
03:40 The Opening Match
03:41 I'm starting to sound like a broken record now, but yet again I do see the upside.
03:45 While having a banger of a fight to start every Dynamite is always really cool, you
03:48 do need to spice the format up here and there, otherwise you run the risk of falling into
03:53 a pattern.
03:54 This is why the likes of CM Punk and Adam Cole have gone full on sports entertainment
03:57 here and there and kicked things off with an opening promo, and look, with Punk it tied
04:01 into the MGF feud and that thing was gold.
04:04 With that said, we have seen that for the last 20 years.
04:07 So when AEW began putting wrestling at the front of its wrestling show, fans obviously
04:11 ate it up, because why wouldn't we?
04:13 No matter what, this is what we tune in for.
04:15 It also gives you a proper adrenaline rush that gets you pumped up for the rest of the
04:19 show, and is definitely something All Elite Wrestling should keep more often than not.
04:22 The credits roll, the entrance music hits, away we go.
04:25 And you're always going to get raw comparisons when you do do somebody grabbing a microphone,
04:29 and no that's not fair, but nobody said it would be.
04:32 4.
04:33 All Star Matches
04:34 I'm pretty sure if Tony Khan had kept doing this it would have blown up in his face, but
04:38 man, did AEW like giving PPV worthy matches away on TV?
04:42 But it did plant the seeds for the inevitable.
04:44 Expectation levels went through the roof and then wobbled when it wavered.
04:48 The replacement to this was taking a proper star and putting them against a young up-and-comer
04:52 or a veteran that could withstand a loss, and that simply was never going to be as fun
04:56 how could it be?
04:57 It does serve a purpose though, and really when we were doing this AEW was desperate
05:01 to get their name out there.
05:02 What better way to do that than with dream fights people had always wanted to see?
05:06 It is another case of the promotion coming into its own then and getting ready for the
05:09 long haul, or basically, we'd been spoiled.
05:13 There could be struggles here too, mind.
05:14 There are so many top tier talents that you can't beat right now, eventually a lot of
05:18 questions may be asked.
05:20 3.
05:21 Making Rampage distinct from Dynamite
05:23 I'm not entirely sure we can judge this just yet as it's too early, but there's definitely
05:27 been a shift in the thought process.
05:29 When Rampage kicked off initially it did feel like a very match heavy production, before
05:33 finding its feet where it would often go fight, angle, fight, angle, fight, angle, the end.
05:37 For one reason or another, and I would guess that big roster comes into play again, it
05:41 is now just a barrage of content or as much as we can squeeze into that one hour.
05:45 It is an absolute blast as you're never bored and never know what's coming, but on occasion
05:49 it can be a little bit too much.
05:51 I still don't get how they fit in as much as they do within 60 minutes, but sometimes
05:54 it can feel like we're sacrificing certain stories just to get to the next beat.
05:58 I still believe Rampage is going to come into its own at some point, especially if Ricky
06:02 Starks, Keith Lee, Swerve, Strickland and Powerhouse continue to make it their own.
06:06 Those guys are smashing it.
06:08 2.
06:09 Listening
06:10 On the one hand, you have to listen to your audience.
06:12 If you don't you will create unrest and a disconnect will begin to form.
06:16 We have seen that time and time again.
06:18 On the other side to this though is that there are some individuals who definitely should
06:21 not be listened to.
06:23 If we did that the whole format would be scrapped, and never forget why AEW definitely does want
06:27 to keep that hardcore base, extending it to welcoming the more casual supporter is equally
06:31 as important, without both you can't grow.
06:34 Herein lies the reason though that not every single thing is being switched just because
06:38 the audience was vocal, as that mentioned audience has changed.
06:41 Far more newcomers have found their way along for the ride, and whether you like it or not,
06:45 their voice also counts too.
06:46 It's why any TV time or elite wrestling can get as vital as they try out new ideas,
06:51 but it cannot be like it was in 2019.
06:54 The company is so much bigger.
06:56 If you want to compare it to your favourite band playing the local bar before finding
06:59 their way to huge arenas, that would be fair.
07:01 We're just at another level now, and with that comes great responsibility.
07:06 1.
07:07 Brightening up the audience
07:08 And no, I don't mean reading them books or teaching them math, I am talking about
07:11 the physical act of lighting the crowd up in areas so we can see their beaming faces.
07:15 It's a ploy AEW utilised so much in the early days, to the point it got noticed all
07:20 the time.
07:21 It made the whole visual feel fresh too, and actually seeing fans lose their minds was
07:24 very entertaining.
07:25 To be fair, Mr Khan believes that trying to recreate that sporting, combat atmosphere
07:30 is the way to go, and he wouldn't be wrong.
07:32 I mean, ratings are up at the moment, so it's not like this is proving to be a huge
07:35 flop and maybe even Warner requested it, and if they do that, nobody has a choice anyway.
07:40 It was a nice friendly touch though, that hopefully one day could rear its head again
07:44 once more.
07:45 [Music]