Ranking Every AEW "ERA" From Worst To Best

You don't need this list to tell you that the year or so that followed March 2020 often felt like the bleakest of times.

However, one thing the average All Elite lover has discovered over the last few years is that TK and the gang have a funny ol' habit of making life-affirming lemonade out of life's sourest of lemons.

Transforming an empty Daily's Place into a safe and compelling space for wrestling fans to escape to for a few hours each and every Wednesday night, the first AEW PPV to go down in front of a grand total of 0 fans set the outrageously creative tone for what was to come.

Stadium Stampede is a piece of art. One that simply wouldn't have had the chance to exist were it not for the planet being completely locked away at the time. Hell, it was so unexpectedly thrilling, the promotion has repeatedly tried - and sometimes failed - to recapture that specific magic ever since, with this moment of glorious mascot smacking, bar brawling, and goalpost moonsaulting mayhem later inspiring gripping Anarchy in the Arena and Wembley Stadium wars, too.

Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley both competed for the title of greatest wrestler on planet earth. 'The Belt Collector' finally reminded the world greatness looks like in the middle of the squared-circle and 'Mox' stepped up as the resilient, badass anti-hero fans desperately needed.

Sure, not all of the experiments produced all-timer moments by any means. Tooth and Nail and Mimosa Mayhem efforts came and thankfully went. And remember that time 'Iron Mike' stopped by to reignite a feud with Chris Jericho you forgot was ever a thing? Surreal.

That's the word that certainly encapsulates the All Elite experience from the day fans left arenas to the time they were finally allowed back in substantial numbers.

And while innovation, excitement, and good vibes were still oozing out of many an AEW pore during the bizarre Pandemic Era - the rise of Brodie Lee, Eddie Kingston, Hikaru Shida, and Britt Baker (producing a classic Lights Out showing opposite Thunder Rosa), Cody Rhodes' TNT title open challenge, and genuinely mind-blowing arrivals of the likes of FTR and Sting will all stand the test of time - controversy also unfortunately began to infect this exhilarating alternative.

The way AEW handled the sickening Matt Hardy All Out 2020 bump, for example, was terrible and a painful but vital lesson to learn live on PPV. Also, Revolution 2021's sparkler conclusion to an otherwise stellar Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch was embarrassing and made the alternative feel smaller than ever before.

But on the whole, even the rougher no-crowd periods successfully dragged folks away from the horrors outside their own door and reminded them that Elite pro wrestling can brighten even the darkest of spells.