12 Most Paused Moments In AEW History
Those All Elite moments you simply had to pause to believe.
Tony Khan's exciting alternative has already left one hell of a mark on the world of professional wrestling.
Throughout its five years in existence, the company has managed to constantly keep itself in the headlines and trending section, whether due to the outrageous displays seen in-between the ropes or some of the more infamous occurrences found going down on AEW programming.
And with many of these headline-making moments typically being too damn ridiculous, majestic, or shocking to believe during a first watch, fans will inevitably find themselves pausing an episode of Dynamite, Collision, Rampage, or a PPV just to take a closer look at the action - or even rewinding a full section of the insanity to double check their eyes weren't playing Elite tricks on them.
Epic five-star matches are great, of course. But wrestling has always been a place where unbelievable moments live longest in the memories of the viewer.
And the following events undoubtedly sit as some of the most surreal, surprisingly moving, or astonishing to pop up on fans' screens in the time since All Elite Wrestling became a thing in 2019, with stunned folks having no choice but to hit those two vertical, parallel lines to freeze these fiery, agonising, or utterly hilarious moments in time.
12. Ruby Soho's Sickening Landing On Her Neck
Unfortunately kicking things off with a few accidental moments of horror, the night of All Out 2022 was one to forget for Ruby Soho.
Taking on Tay Melo and Sammy Guevara alongside Ortiz in a pre-show match booked to replace the originally planned Guevara vs. Eddie Kingston showdown - one scrapped due to the pair's backstage altercation coming into the event - Soho ultimately suffered two awful botches in the bout. Both of these soon found themselves being paused and rewound by those honestly worried about the unfortunate star... or just the morbidly curious.
I hope Ruby Soho’s neck is okay #AEWAllOut https://t.co/HfQu6AZDmY
— Wrestling News (@WrestlingNewsCo) September 4, 2022
Firstly, after being hung up on 'The Spanish God's shoulders, Ruby was booted to the ground by Tay, but ended up landing incredibly awkwardly on her neck, crumpling in an entirely unnatural position as she connected with the canvas.
Fans immediately feared the worst. However, the seriously tough soul soldiered on. And her rewards for doing so? Having her nose completely exploded by a Tay-KO knee to the face for the finish.
It only gets worse with each subsequent pause and rewind of an unintentionally savage finish which saw Soho - who'd note how she couldn't breathe out of her nose for a few months while recovering - struggling to keep her shoulders down as she clutched her destroyed face during the three-count.