AEW Vs NXT - The New Wrestling War
The Best Of The Best Of The Best Of The Best.
(The first article in our 'New Wrestling War' series can be read here)
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In January 2018, Chris Jericho turned up at the Tokyo Dome to battle Kenny Omega in a Wrestle Kingdom 12 match that would eventually have astonishing and, at-the-time, unthinkable ramifications. It wasn't the start of a movement nor the climax of one, but that's never really been 'Y2J's modus operandi anyway. The best trick Jericho's ever played is convincing the world he's a ingenius innovator rather than the shrewdest bandwagon-jumper in the business.
No shade, of course. His ethos borrows from Vince McMahon himself.
Bruce Prichard and other podcast voices-for-hire that have spent enough time with The Chairman have spoken on his willingness to be just behind the curve rather than ahead of it. Finding massive money not in working out what people want before they do, but spotting it while it's small and capitalising better than anybody else in the market.
Hulk Hogan set Verne Gagne's AWA alight, but McMahon knew how to amplify Hulkamania for the masses. ECW and the New World Order reflected the chaos wrestling needed it before the Attitude Era refined and monetised it to its ultimate end. The main roster superworker era finally bore fruit in the 2010s in response to a generation of independent wrestlers, TNA soldiers and New Japan breakouts that pushed the genre forward whilst the market leader stood still.
All Elite Wrestling may want to "Change The Universe", but they too have understood what their largest possible audience loves the most from WWE's current output in order to service them with it in their own image. For so long the (black and) gold standard, NXT may be about to absorb some less-than-friendly fire...
CONT'D...