10 Hidden Meanings Behind Outlandish ALL IN Attires

Full disclosure - this article will not be full of the most exhaustive detective work.

ALL IN was every bit the mammoth show it promoted itself as, but it crucially still existed (broadly) within an Independent Wrestling universe. Not every performer go and spend it up on gear for their big night as most do in WWE when pay-per-views come calling. But those that could did so with incomparable style.

The little nods and nudges to pop culture, in-jokes, and their own gimmicks (and, in one case a past persona entirely was on display) because - like the performers themselves, they were designed to be. The show was an act of vindication for many but there was a debutant ball atmosphere around many of the encounters too.

Though this pay-per-view should confirm that the industry is experiencing the contemporary equivalent of the 1980s and 1990s booms, ALL IN will likely still be a record crowd for the bulk of the wrestlers on the card to have worked in front of, and one they're unlike to top unless WWE snaps them up and away from this brave new world.

Without an empire to call their home, these performers are experiencing that intangible feeling on their own terms. They've got it. So why on earth wouldn't they flaunt it?

Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky ran Philadelphia's famed 'Rocky' steps in the go-home edition of Being The Elite, foreshadowing their turns during the Zero Hour clash with The Briscoes as Balboa and fierce rival-turned-best friend Apollo Creed.

As well as expressing their spirit in typically contrived and comedic fashion, the SCU members were the first to reflect the dreamlike position they found themselves in. Kazarian and Sky are independent veterans - the response they received at ALL IN was a fitting welcome for fighters that have punched the proverbial heavy bag for years just to attain it.