Why AEW Is Beating WWE At Its Own Game

Triple H Vince McMahon
WWE

AEW won the battle for the heart of the wrestling fandom between October 2, 2019 and April 7, 2021 because Triple was spent as a creative force when he was asked to compete with a game plan that could only fail against AEW's full embrace of the artistic platform. The "as much a pro wrestling product as Triple H could get away with" strategy lacked badly in comparison, with its synthetic melodrama and corporate-speak promos, and after almost two years of reactionary booking and snide moves that turned the old cult favourite heel, that was that.

As a result of this humiliating slaughter, Triple H was the corporate executive equivalent of punishment-booked as NXT 2.0 was reimagined, amusingly, as the complete antithesis to NXT 'Black and Gold'. The Capitol Wrestling Center was a dank, dingy pit. The NXT 2.0 Arena or whatever it's called is a multi-colour kid's TV show set. NXT 1.0 treated kick pads like a 7th degree black belt; NXT 2.0 treats kick pads like they are a terroristic threat to the company's values. The CWC played host to aspirational ****+ matches that invariably went five minutes too long; the NXT 2.0 Arena is a backdrop to romance angles, poker games and problematic Asian gimmicks.

Beyond everything else - subjectively received match quality, storylines, angles - the ultimate success of any pro wrestling promoter is in their ability to create new stars. This is where AEW and WWE are exactly alike: their main objective.

All indications suggest that AEW is also winning the battle of pro wrestling's future.

CONT'D...(2 of 6)

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!