10 Wrestlers You Never Thought Would Get Over On TV

1. Orange Cassidy

Orange Cassidy
AEW

When the 'Orange Cassidy Is All Elite' graphic popped up on Being The Elite and socials, it carried a heavy dissonance.

AEW was the sports league at a time before they'd dropped the thread - to become something significantly better, which isn't stated enough - while Cassidy was the most ironic meme wrestler out. The two were thought incompatible, particularly since the most prominent GIFs of Cassidy saw him transgress on trad pro wresting with an apathy that deepened the cut.

There's a famous scene in the Simpsons - the Yakuza Vs. Mafia fight in which a small, stoic and sinister gangster lies in wait. You know he's going to do something amazing - but when?

As has been meme'd to death, Orange Cassidy is pro wrestling's answer to that man, only AEW, in a genius twist that steadily got him more over, very quietly and gradually opened the door Marge Simpson shut on Homer, thereby revealing the full extent of his brilliant in-ring and comedic range in perfect sync with how much the fandom wanted to see 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!