5 Ways AEW's Tony Khan Is A Great Wrestling Booker (& 5 Ways He ISN'T)

2. IS - His Attention To Detail Is Richly Rewarding

Darby Allin Nick Wayne September 6
AEW

As with every wrestling promoter since the dawn of time, Tony Khan has dropped the odd story or told the odd clunker.

Remember when a hair versus hair match was built between Matt Hardy and Orange Cassidy? Or that time Ethan Page set his sights on the All-Atlantic title? Or when Paul Turner was tasked with tightening up the officiating, after which it only got worse and Tony Khan didn't seem to mind?

Khan doesn't map out some grand narrative in which every beat means something, but his best work is remarkably subtle by the standards of the medium. Consider the finish to the September 6 Dynamite match between Darby Allin and Nick Wayne.

Throughout the match, Darby was reluctant to go too hard. He had brought Wayne in as a protege figure. After a more stern test than he anticipated, Darby ended his opponent, after telling Wayne in a mid-match promo that he wasn't hitting him hard enough, by repeatedly and viciously kicking him in the back of the head. Taz even sarcastically remarked "What a mentor" on commentary.

Darby's patronising, cruel behaviour fuelled Wayne's motivation to turn heel and embrace Christian Cage as his father figure, but the story was layered. Darby only wanted to draw the very best out of Wayne, not realising that the message of tough love would be misinterpreted. The origin story behind the Patriarchy stable was constructed really rather well, hidden in the body of a television match.

Tony Khan uses granular detail to map out his long-term arcs and stories, and skilfully overlaps his plots - Cage's awful behaviour throughout the Allin programme drew the ire of a debuting Adam Copeland, launching that character's stated mission and goals.

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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!