10 Shocking Acts Of Violence In AEW

Well, All Out 2024 was a show, wasn't it?

After an atrociously cold 2023, All Elite Wrestling has course-corrected this year, with solid booking, engaging storylines and a run of PPV events that has been, quite frankly, awesome. This past weekend, they shocked the world with All Out 2024, which featured some of the most violent spots in recent memory - and it's got the whole of the wrestling community talking.

Bad faith takes have taken to pearl clutching, whilst AEW's target audience of 'the sickos' lapped up every minute of it. Where your own tastes and limits are will vary, such is the subjective enjoyment of wrestling, but it's safe to say that All Out 2024 is one of the most talked about shows of the year. The thing is, should we really be that surprised?

Since its inception, AEW has tried its level best to change what is and isn't acceptable in American mainstream pro wrestling, pushing the boundaries especially when it comes to violence. Their offering of a 'buffet' of wrestling appeals to many, but the gnarly, violent side of the sport isn't something the majority of wrestling fans, subjected to WWE and WWE only for the past few decades, would be accustomed to...

A nice, campy one to start off with. That is, of course, if abduction and body mutilation can be labelled as campy? 

Despite being in contention for wrestler of the year, and being a beloved babyface by the fans, it's easy to forget that many were underwhelmed by the signing of Swerve Strickland back in March 2022. A thrown together tag team with Keith Lee saw a title run early on, but most people only remember that as the split that had no pay off.

However, during that title reign, the terribly named 'Swerve In Our Glory' entered a rivalry with The Acclaimed, who had turned into one of the biggest babyface acts as their unlikely alliance with Daddy Ass (AKA Billy Gunn) saw their popularity rise. Their 'scissoring' became one of the most over things in wrestling, and Daddy Ass began what has been a nice twilight to his career.

He also became the target of the villainous Swerve, who abducted Daddy Ass on an episode of Rampage and then proceeded to torture the beloved veteran. Yes, it was pretty corny, and the acting isn't particularly great. But as a pre-cursor to the dangerous force that Swerve would become, it showed how far he's willing to take things. 

Plus, implying that Billy Gunn was having his fingers snipped off with pliers was pretty harrowing.