10 Things Everybody Gets Wrong About AEW

5. "There Are Too Many Dives"

Brandi Rhodes AEW
Lee South/AEW

Was there too much brawling in the Attitude Era?

Virtually every main event sprawled into the crowd under a swarm of punches, and a worked punch - particularly so many of them - isn't any less contrived than a dive.

Kenny Omega, PAC, Hangman Page, Cody, Jon Moxley, Darby Allin: virtually every key singles player not named Chris Jericho does one dive per match, and this is multiplied to extravagant degrees in the tag team division. It's a problem endemic to wrestling at large - if it isn't a dive, it's an apron bump - but the take betrays the diverse complexion of AEW's in-ring.

Thus far, in well under less than a year, AEW has promoted: unhinged, barbaric death matches (Omega Vs, Moxley); electric, lucha libre-inspired sprints (Fénix Vs. Nick Jackson); the most timeless of old-school dramatic spectacles (everything Cody does); deeply authentic, charming-as-hell joshi wars (Riho Vs. Emi Sakura); scintillating new-gen tags (Lucha Bros. Vs. Private Party); veteran versus upstart battles (Jericho Vs. Darby Allin); layered, story-driven tags (Omega and Page Vs. Moxley and PAC); revived standards of yesteryear (Jericho Vs. Jungle Boy); intricate, state-of-the-art singles matches (PAC Vs. Page)...

AEW is criticised constantly for its dives, but in totality, it is the most eclectic in-ring product out there.

Contributor
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!