10 Ways AEW Has Listened To Its Audience

9. Pulling Alex Marvez From Commentary

Kenny Omega Don Callis Impact
AEW

Alex Marvez seems like a lovely fella, and he's supposedly a hell of a sports radio host, but as a wrestling commentator? Nah, I'm good, thanks.

While the first few AEW events were universally praised, one small gripe that a large percentage of fans had was with the commentary of Marvez alongside Jim Ross and Excalibur. JR brought name value and that voice to the table, whereas Excalibur offered up exceptional, detailed analysis. As for Marvez, he quite frankly brought absolutely nothing to the broadcasts of AEW's first two events - Double or Nothing and then Fight for the Fallen.

Listening to the largely negative response to Marvez - who, if anything, actually detracted away from the overall product - AEW opted to bring in Goldenboy for the promotion's third event, All Out. Since then, Marvez has been utilised as a backstage interviewer by AEW, and he seems far more fitted to that role than he does to a spot at the announce desk.

It raises the question of when can we expect to see Goldenboy again? Whereas Marvez was a total dud on the call, Goldenboy did a great job in his fleeting AEW appearances.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.