A glowing, magnificent credit to every single woman past and present to ever enter an industry systematically set up against them, Evolution was a f*cking ripper of a pay-per-view from start to finish.
It was just all so so good. Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair knocked out a contemporary classic right as 'The Man' character was smashing ceilings, Ronda Rousey and Nikki Bella massively over-delivered in their high-pressure main event, Shayna Baszler, Kairi Sane, Toni Storm and Io Shirai flexed their NXT/Mae Young Classic pedigree whilst a nothing six-woman pitting The Boss & Hug Connection and Natalya against The Riott Squad somehow absolutely banged.
It was so fabulously rich in irony - in the ungainly era of supersized shows and needless churn, the performers once considered only worthy of the p*ss breaks didn't give viewers the opportunity to take one. A well-structured and perfectly paced card was greeted accordingly by one of the hottest crowds of the decade, capturing the sort of multi-sensory overload WWE haven't really managed to generate since the tail-end of the Attitude Era.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
