10 Ways WWE Was Made Worse By Being Lazy

9. No Pyro

Ali Andrade
WWE

More cheap than lazy, the lack of pyro directly informs the lack of atmosphere on WWE shows.

So do the stilted promos and formulaic TV matches and all the other sh*te, but WWE used to feel like a show. It used to get your blood pumping. It used to obscure the average talent and further enhance the real stars by detonating mortar blasts and creating sparkles of visual electricity that energised the audience like a current.

The sheer noise they generated - massive, screeching eruptions - was irresistible to the atmosphere. The pyro didn't just look cool, or spectacular: the sensory overload served a genuine psychological purpose. It overawed the senses of the crowd, removing them from their inhibitions well before the opening babyface shine, effectively conditioning them to enter fan mode immediately.

It's a sort of laziness, in that WWE deems the product enough, when it so clearly isn't.

The absence of pyro is a not considerable part of WWE's all-encompassing apathy: here's a thing, and because we've monopolised it, here's a half-a*sed version of it.

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!