10 Wrestlers That Pissed Off The Fans

8. Orange Cassidy

Danhausen ROH
AEW

Orange Cassidy has broken "kayfabe" precisely zero times in AEW.

Precisely zero of his opponents have sold for his slow, deliberately weak kicks, which he throws lightly to lull them into a lunging, easily countered attack.

Nor does every one of his opponents stand there and look pissed off, rendering it too contrived. Some wrestlers just batter him from the jump.

The grazed kick isn't some disgrace to realism. It is a platform on which a wrestler can express their character through their response to it.

The objective of any babyface is to pop the crowd with their comeback. This can be accomplished in various ways. Some - indeed most - opt for a high spot. Knowing that stunning athleticism is normal, a bit boring and rarely effective now, Cassidy puts his hands in his pockets to create the illusion that what he is doing is impossible, as opposed to something that can be executed safely with a sufficient amount of practise.

The man continues to piss off some fans despite their imagined bad faith projections of what he actually does in the ring.

It would be astonishing, if it couldn't be reduced to the initials of the promotion for which he works.

 
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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!