Three Ways AEW Can Improve In 2023

I’ve been watching AEW Dynamite since it premiered on October 2nd, 2019.

Three years on from that date, I’m happy to report I still love the show. At its best it is genuinely compelling television comparable to anything else in the medium, weaving effortlessly between drama and comedy. The in-ring action has been spectacular, showcasing some of, if not the absolute best talent in all of professional wrestling.

Tony Khan’s wrestling buffet works, the blend of styles and sensibilities complimenting rather than stifling one another. While it’s still a relatively new wrestling show, I feel safe asserting that AEW has produced the most consistently excellent weekly wrestling product I have, personally, ever experienced.

If you find that hyperbolic then I should reiterate consistent is the key word there.

The McMahon Behind The Curtain

The opening segment of this week's Monday Night Raw is a light shining at us from the future, illuminating what the WWE could (and hopefully will) become one day.

In it, Roman Reigns, yet again irate at the absence of his WrestleMania opponent, Brock Lesnar, took to the microphone to air his grievances.

Brock, in Roman's words, "Didn't show up to work".

This has been the essence of his problem with Lesnar, and the basis of their WrestleMania rematch. Roman, regardless of the crowd's perpetually mixed-to-negative reaction to him, always shows up to work. He "busts his ass" for the business that's "in his blood", and, just like the fans, he's sick and tired of Brock Lesnar only showing up to work "when the money is right or the city is right". He believes The Universal Champion should be a full-time member of the WWE roster; an unconditional leader of the locker-room and the company.

The Road To Better Representation Of Asians At WrestleMania

On January 28th, 2018, two performers of Japanese descent, Shinsuke Nakamura and Asuka, won their respective Royal Rumble matches.

This was a defining moment both in pro-wrestling history, and in my personal pro-wrestling fandom.

When you’re an ethnic minority, growing up a pro-wrestling fan presents a challenge.

Pro-Wrestling's xenophobic roots result in the depiction of ethnic minorities as the heels (villains) opposite the "All-American" babyfaces (heroes). We are represented by racial caricatures and stereotypes that are designed to emphasize one’s foreignness. It’s a constant reminder that we are the “other”; that the way we look, the way we sound, the way we act inevitably elicits boos.

Hey, WWE, Please Hire Women Writers

Last night's Raw ended with Stephanie McMahon announcing the inaugural Women’s Royal Rumble match at the forthcoming annual pay-per-view.

This is a welcome announcement that instantaneously makes next year’s Rumble more interesting and essential-viewing. Over the next six weeks, fans will watch this match take shape, and discuss who it should bolster, how it will be structured, and what surprises may be in store. This is all good, and it’s reassuring to see the WWE do the obviously right thing.

Fans should definitely be happy, but fans should also be asking, “What happens after?”

The Inaugural Women's Royal Rumble Review (2018)

The WWE's annual Royal Rumble is many pro-wrestling fan's favorite pay-per-view, and with good reason.

It is the pop-filled prelude to WrestleMania, typically establishing the primary Championship narratives that lead into Vince McMahon's "showcase of the immortals". Unfortunately, recent Rumbles have been mired in fan discontent, with the WWE and its audience locked in deep disagreement about who deserves the "top guy" moniker, and thus a shot at WrestleMania's main event.

All eyes await, with a mounting sense of anticipatory dread, as the final four participants are revealed. There is a collective sense of "really...this is who it's going to be?" that hangs over the final minutes of the match like a grim cloud.

The Writings