5 Wrestlers Who Will Get Over In AEW (And 5 Who Won't)

AEW has promised a pro wrestling utopia by promoting itself as the tonal opposite of WWE's sports entertainment dystopia.

Wins and losses matter; every card is announced in advance; no promos are scripted; every performer is permitted to get over under their own in-ring style; several performers, not least of which Orange Cassidy and Joey Janela, would never be presented like this in a WWE ring, if even presented at all; Jim Ross has turned babyface by being presented not as a joke but the most authoritative, respected voice in all of wrestling: AEW was seemingly drawn together by a focus group of lapsed WWE fans mourning what they miss about "this great sport". Also, Tony Schiavone is back, he's out there calling MJF a prick, and all is right in the wrestling world.

That's the marketing - the reality hasn't quite lived up to it yet, likely because it can't - and it has proven so effective that crowds are almost desperate to connect with or give a chance to every talent. It's a weird subversion of how all of this works: the fans are proactively getting stars over, not being won over.

The novelty won't last.

With thanks to Scott Lesh for use of his stunning photography.

What's ironic about the clichéd render of the AEW fan - a man in a Bullet Club t-shirt famished for seven star matches - is that it isn't true. The opposite might be true: gauging by the superior in-ring technicality of NXT, defeated so far in the ratings battle and social media conversation, the AEW base is more interested in the emotional investment.

Cody isn't the best wrestler in AEW, but he is by some distance the most over. His Double Or Nothing masterclass with brother Dustin wasn't merely the best match promoted by AEW thus far; it's the company's mission statement. A match that appeals to the soul is more over in AEW than the quest for star ratings.

It is on this basis that Yuka Sakazaki will get over as the face of the Women's division.

She is incredibly charming as a personality. Her resting beam face is delightful, and it doesn't feel forced; there's such an authentic sympathy to her act and indeed person, and the bugs in her act are features: the way she wobbles on the top rope before flying off it works so well because it looks so imperfect. You can feel the crowd willing to get behind her because it's pure drama: a struggle to achieve a goal.