10 Absolute Worst Ways WWE Dragged Out Feuds

1. Everybody Is An Idiot

Blue Balls
WWE.com

Kevin Owens feuded with AJ Styles last year under the nominal objective of determining who was best qualified to represent the United States; its best, most Phenomenal practitioner, or a literal pretender: the Canadian heel 'Face of America'. So far, so jingoistic, but engaging enough, even if only the talent involved was considered.

At Backlash '17, following a somewhat subdued effort in which it was clear both men were saving something for the by now shrugging inevitability of at least one sequel, AJ was portrayed as a dunce for tangling his own foot in the cables lurking below the announce table. This accomplished nothing beyond a flimsy excuse to settle the war at Battleground, which might have happened, were WWE not a systemic disgrace to narrative.

What followed was an invited catastrophe; conflating roles - only the referee was meant to appear like an idiot, to set up a third match in which an amateur "Guest", Shane McMahon, was to do his job for him - AJ made himself look like a dipsh*t by forgetting the finish entirely, thus losing the title by accident. No matter; the talent holding the title hardly mattered, only that the title was used an excuse to fill out the card.

And fill out SummerSlam it did, at which Styles retained the title because, on SmackDown in 2017, everybody was as pigsh*t-thick as the programme's Head Writer. Who was the better man? Nobody, really; we arrived at Kevin Owens Vs. Commissioner Shane McMahon, a feud hinged on the idea that Owens was taking liberties with the rules. Maybe?

Since the rules meant nothing, what was there to break beyond AJ's integrity?

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!