10 Secrets To A Guaranteed POP In Wrestling
4. Executing A Canadian Destroyer (If You Ordinarily Wouldn't)
In a typical week of pro wrestling in 2023, the wrestling fandom will see:
A classic or near-classic match; an unbelievable unscripted promo; a returning or debuting talent; a wrestler pissing blood; a crazed table spot; an MP4 of Komander or El Hijo del Vikingo rewriting the laws of physics with their literally unbelievable aerial work; a promise of yet another great match, like Bryan Danielson Vs. Konosuke Takeshita, set for the week after...
The modern wrestling fan is inundated with brilliance, constantly, across countless facets and genres of the medium. At this point, nothing can be "brought back" as a popular, long-forgotten standard. Enjoy the wrestling world as it exists right now, because it's almost impossible for it to get much better. So how, in the face of this normalised wonder, can a wrestler even hope to get over?
There are no "You don't see that every day" moments left - unless the wrestler is smart about it.
One can always execute a Canadian destroyer - but only if they are one of the 15% of wrestlers who don't include it in their standard repertoire.
It's as much a crowd appeal as wrestling move at this point: sucking up in the coolest way possible. John Cena should have tried it between 2006 and 2014. He didn't, but the very savvy Dustin Rhodes did; in doing so, he got over in early AEW as an anti-bad faith actor willing to respect and mix it up with the new generation of wrestlers to get over with a generation of fans with shifting tastes.
See also: Bad Bunny, who drew a gigantic pop with a destroyer at WrestleMania 37 because it is a complex and athletic move he seemingly had no right to execute.
The destroyer is such a popular move that it has literally altered the wrestling landscape...