Why There Will Never Be Another Wrestling Boom

That statement is bound to annoy people—AEW’s failure to retain viewers is WWE’s fault1! does read as absurd, on the surface, without factoring in the idea that NXT exists literally for this purpose—but wrestling more than any other medium has this bizarre and idiosyncratic ability to simply turn off its fans. Nobody stopped watching films, or music, because they watched or heard something they hated or tired of.

But most everybody has a story in which they went dark on wrestling (WWE) without seeking an alternative. Perhaps AEW’s problem is that too many people are too disenchanted with wrestling, and there are too few left to make a significant impression on the numbers. Or is that bargaining? Even writing that argument felt flimsy, and it’s AEW’s job to do everything possible to convince those fans otherwise. Soberingly, TNA outdrew AEW at its peak, and that organisation was a disaster of star creation. Its abiding legacy is that it somehow conspired to become even more pathetic than the competition.

On paper, AEW should be moving the needle more.

Chris Jericho is an inspired choice to lead the brand. He has legendary cachet, is a name, and can still go with a new, modified brawling style that is timeless, basic enough to follow, but bruising enough to entertain and take seriously. He’s clearly having the time of his career getting everything over in a burst of hilarious enthusiasm. Cody by reaction alone is a tremendous, over babyface. To varying degrees, Jon Moxley, Darby Allin, and Private Party have starred in this brief TNT era. Watching AEW, it is undeniable that near everything is over, including the Elite, who have drawn criticism for not fully operating in the TV mode.

So why isn’t this reflected in the numbers?

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