10 Most Desperate Ways AEW Got You To Watch

5. Borrowing An Eye-Rolling WWE Device

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AEW

WWE doesn't tend to tell stories, as much as Bruce Prichard likes to insist that they do on his podcast.

What WWE does is they book a match, book an inconclusive finish, then run it back under the tacit promise that this match is what counts. Then, because it is WWE, the second match doesn't count either, and the series inevitably goes to a trilogy. This is what they think a story is.

AEW's blustering rhetoric works to a degree, in that their audience laps up their various digs at and parodies of the "enemy," but then, when they do something similar to the Fed, they expose themselves to ridicule. Then again, they expose themselves to ridicule by simply existing, because certain serf fans are so brainwashed that they consider the formation of the promotion a personal slight against Vince McMahon.

At Revolution 2022, Dr. Britt Baker defeated Thunder Rosa with the help of Jamie Hayter and Rebel in what was a House of Torture x WWE match; the interference was relentless, it went 17 minutes and 21 seconds, and it existed purely to set up another match. This is - sigh - "wrestling booking 101", but it was a desperate use of Vince's playbook designed to reheat a woefully neglected programme.

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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!