7 Things WWE Can Learn From ALL IN

3. Not Forcing Crowd Reactions

All In Kenny Omega Penta El Zero
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Ever get the feeling you're being trolled watching WWE programming?

The company want their guys to succeed, not yours. It's why they recently turned two organically over babyfaces in Becky Lynch and Braun Strowman heel. In the company's eyes, Charlotte Flair and Roman Reigns are to be cheered, not your favourites, and now, you aren't allowed to like them.

ALL IN, like most other wrestling ventures, was the opposite. Cody and The Bucks understood how their fans would react to certain situations, and forced nothing. This was most apparent in Marty Scurll vs. Kazuchika Okada, where a wrestler nickname 'The Villain' was almost going to be one of the most popular guys in the building, but wasn't pushed into pointless heeling.

Match roles were dictated by reactions. This should be simple, but it's something WWE get wrong time and time again. Wrestling, at its core, is about manipulating the crowd to elicit the desired response. WWE fail at this by forcing situations that are objectively false (like Charlotte playing the victim to Becky), with the easily fixable problem leading to widescale resentment.

If only they weren't so stubborn.

Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.