10 Awful Things Wrestling Needs To LEAVE In 2023

2023 was the year in which mainstream U.S. pro wrestling underwent yet another paradigm shift.

The idea of WWE entering a period of resurgence, drawing critical acclaim and energising and growing its base was even more unfathomable, in 2018, than the emergence of a new major arena competitor. In December of that year, Vince McMahon apologised for how bad his product was, in an "if I have to..." marketing ploy, and couldn't get through the first minute of his mea culpa without putting himself over as a genius and lashing out at the audience. WWE never felt more doomed than on December 17, 2018.

Now, under the stewardship of Triple H, WWE is on fire. A fixed cast heavily featured as important star players; very long title reigns that have elevated the prestige of championships that were once worthless; characters with depth who agonise over the decision to turn: WWE can feel repetitive and basic in 2023, but Triple H is nailing the basics.

AEW meanwhile is cold, the magic has evaporated, and often feels slippery and unfocused with its convoluted approach.

While each major promotion is experiencing mixed fortunes, both are guilty of irritating turds that need flushing in 2024...

What tends to happen in wrestling - and this will become a recurring theme - is that, when something catches fire, everybody wants to do it, all of the time, to diminishing returns.

WWE was ablaze to a white-hot level in 2023, entering its most popular period in years. Decades.

The Bloodline saga drove this resurgence - in particular, the incredible chemistry between Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn. It was a gripping storyline, at once warming and ominous. Sami's joy at being accepted informed some lovely light material undermined, with masterful episodic tension, by Roman's manipulative behaviour.

Now, because that worked, dissension within stables became WWE's primary narrative driver. The Judgment Day became Bloodline Raw. While repetitive, this was done well enough. There was in contrast zero point to the tension within Imperium. Giovanni Vinci wasn't rendered sympathetic by being cast as the weak link. He wasn't the bullied good guy destined to break out; he was just a loser, a victim of a trend that made no sense in that context.

This trend was so default that Bobby Lashley and the Street Profits barely got on the second they formed. Most factions exist with a split in mind in the future - it's an easy, organic-feeling means of building a grudge - but the illusion of a heel group intent on taking over was barely established.

The original Four Horsemen simply kicked ass, felt like tight brothers who loved making the towns together, and sold fights with incredible promos for two years.

There are significantly worse models to follow than that.