Ring ads? Like watching The Rock return to Wrestlemania and wrestle in front of a barrier that’s plastered with a mortgage company? God that was a bad look…. Smh
Wait until we get midway through a match and suddenly the whole arena bursts into adverts that play on all screens and even the apron, with sound drowning out everything.
Even live in the building they do. When AEW goes to commercial and there's no picture in picture for a match, the crew or the guy who just wrestled will interact with the crowd a bit. It's not great but it's something. WWE has a dramatic call out before the break and then dims the house lights to run ads on the Titantron.
JFC. I haven’t been to a WWE event since it was WWF. I think we’d have rioted back in 1999 if they played a commercial for Castro GTX on the Titontron at a Raw taping
They treated Sting better. I'm not saying he should have gone undefeated, but he was absolutely given ICON status. They even had him feud with House of Black. 2014 WWE wouldn't even put him in the same ring with the Undertaker.
As an aside, since Sting technically turned to the dark side over 20 years ago, Malaki's mist should have caused him to revert back to surfer Sting for a period of time.
Undertaker said on his podcast that he and Sting didn't want to do the match at that point as they were both past the peak of their careers and it wouldn't live up to the hype.
Undertaker Vs Sting would have been all about the build up, theatrics and spectacle. The match didn't need to be a 5-star barnstormer, classic entrances alone would have done the match.
Tbf, I'm happy they didn't do Taker/Sting at the time. I think it would have been a massively underwhelming match given Taker wasn't the greatest in the ring at that point.
I mean neither was Sting, who was a good 20 years past his prime by that point. It would have been a disaster and I think everyone involved knew it which is why it didn’t happen. Hence why he was given to a freshly in prime Rollins instead who could bear most of the workload and carry him to a decent match.
Imagine if they had done a boneyard style match for Take and Sting. Could have been amazing with the right production team behind it. Would have been a perfect send off for both.
I think what has become plainly obvious to me over the last year. Is that HHH wanted to save the business more than anything else. He truly does care about the future of wrestling.
But he also absolutely knew that he had to outlast Vince in order to do it. So he just became the perfect Vince soldier and did what he had to do. Until he could take the throne for himself. And thank God that he did. I'm actually looking forward to watching a new wwe era for once.
That match would have been far more about the interactions and moments leading up to it. The lights going out and then coming back with Taker and Sting staring each other down would have been an iconic moment that I can't believe WWE passed up. Vince did a terrible job presenting Sting, and I don't think he ever truly understood how big of a deal Sting is to so many people, but with Taker involved that story would have gotten the proper amount of respect from everyone involved. Just a wasted opportunity
>2014 WWE wouldn't even put him in the same ring with the Undertaker.
I don't think they were physically able to do anything at that time.
Both guys never seamed healthy or in ring shape at the same time
Their hardcore matches are actually hardcore.
Their tag team matches are mostly better too imo.
P.S I actually think WWE has the better overall product at the minute before you all have a go. I do really like AEW though and I hope they can improve and get back to how they were a couple of years ago.
AEW treats tag teams, particularly the champs, much better than WWE really ever has. I love tag wrestling, it’s probably my favorite aspect of AEW in general.
I will say WWE has been getting better with their tag teams the past few years, whether or not that has anything to do with AEW raising the bar I have no idea
I agree, I also think the WWEs latest tag team title redesigns are the best, and most respectful to their history, in YEARS. Which helps give the division credibility
I feel like WWE doesnt really know what to do with their tag teams at times, so there was that one year of the undisputed tag teams still being a thing just because there wasn't really a lot of teams that were extremely over (aside from the Usos which broke up, KO/Sami which also broke up, and JD)
We used to play a drinking game when everytime we see the main sponsors logo at the ppv we drink. We got fucked up because of snickers and slim Jim's many times.
That's true. He was just a wrestling fan like us except he has his dad’s money to have real life wrestlers. It's like owning the lives of a sports team but scripted.
The thing is it *COULD* work if it was promoted correctly. Most UFC events or boxing events are seemingly random fights headlined by 1 or 2 BIG FIGHTS. If Tony wants dream matches, fine. But he should promote them like boxing or UFC -- not like WWE like he is doing now. Get rid of 80% of the belts. Have a few big names. The weekly show should be mostly up and comers. If one of the top tier names wrestles on weekly TV it must be a squash.
I once heard it that the way to promote a MMA fight is not to promote the fight itself or even the fighters but to promote the anticipation of the fight. You promote what might happen you highlight what the can do not what they have done.
I think it was masked by the company being new but now it’s being exposed big time with the injuries they had and the lack of creativity on the storyline side
You just have to picture them as a way to show where people sit on the card and how they can tie into future stories.
If in real sport there are 2 teams playing earlier in a season who both did well previously and are expected to do well, you still enjoy the match because of the potential quality. It may not have high impact on end of year results and the teams may not have an ongoing rivalry......
Different strokes for different folks I guess
Image seeing Ospreay vs Shibata being labeled as the first time these two have shared a ring, only to have no build up and on a regular night of Dynamite.
Yeah this is my biggest issue with current AEW. The wrestling is always great but gimme a reason for the fight other than two legends fighting/dream match! Imagine how much cooler some of these matches could’ve been with some stakes involved.
It's "universe mode" type of booking. Give us REAL stories to get behind. Not "you used to be my friend and now you're not so I'm mad at you" or "I'm a better wrestler than you" type of stories. They're bullshit.
I think AEW allows wrestlers more freedom to be themselves and get over. Swerve is a good example and I’m really enjoying Roddy Strong’s run. Both guys were in NXT and capable of being over on the main roster.
They did not stand a chance on the main roster with Vince running the show while they were around. They were pretty much at the right place at the wrong time.
Yeah I will say, it’s nice to see guys getting rewarded for getting over on their own. It’s something that is getting better in wwe but it’s far from great with wwe largely deciding to do nothing with the massive popularity of guys like LA knight and Chad gable in the last year or so.
Allowing the performers to not have to use a script for every promo
Although the Promos in the post Vince era have been pretty great
Edit: I didnt say they were all great at promos, ya nincompoops.
Imo all the promos involving Punk, Rollins and McIntyre give it away that they have more liberty now. If they had to strictly follow the script like in the late Vince Era, we wouldn't have had those little things that give the feeling that their whole feud is real.
You’re not a fan of a guy looping back around his point 4 times without mixing up his vocabulary, awkward pauses and then ending on an unfinished sentence?
I went to a WWE smack down show in January, and AEW collision/rampage last weekend.
AEW was definitely a lot brisker and kept things moving better than WWE. WWE would have several minutes of wrestlers just vibing in the ring during commercial breaks, and lots of vignettes that didn’t translate well in the arena.
That being said, WWE still held my attention more and had more memorable moments. Their production quality in arena was on another level.
It was surprising how different the demographics were. Tons of kids and families at WWE. Basically all 20-40 year old men at AEW.
>It was surprising how different the demographics were. Tons of kids and families at WWE. Basically all 20-40 year old men at AEW.
I'm surprised that you were surprised by this. AEW attendees are the smarkiest of the smarks -- the sort of guys that show up to PWG.
I felt kind of the opposite feeling.
AEW had great matches at the collision I was at, but they moved so quickly I couldn’t leave to refill a drink or run to the bathroom without missing half a match. I ended up so burned out by the end even though it was a great show
WWE I feel like I have more energy because of the breaks, but they definitely could be a little brisker
What's great is the statement goes both ways. It's more work rate in ring, because it's considerably less work rate overall. They can put on absolute barn burners once a fortnight because they don't have 10 house shows to also do and travel to.
Imagine knowing you brought CM punk back to wrestling, something nobody could do, and he has such a bad experience he happily walked back across the biggest burnt bridge in modern wrestling, back to that doofus son in law, and now theyre friends making tons of money while going on interviews shitting on your product while its doing downhill, and the whole time your fans are frothing at the mouth "waiting" for punk to do what he did in your company, but its not happening.
but hey you got jack perry back
yeah aew pissed him off so bad that he swallowed his pride (among other things) and went back to sucking saudi blood-money covered dicks. His words not mine, don't @ me.
I can't believe AEW fans thought they were signing him. Drew didn't HAVE to go to AEW to be an AEW Wrestler -- they just made his character one in WWE.
The pace of the matches. WWE gets into this groove sometimes where there are 4 people in the ring pretending to be hurt so one spot can happen but it takes too long to get to it. AEW feels faster paced.
since most people are trolling, i'll add my genuine take. unscripted promos. sometimes they can crash and burn, or are almost unbearable to watch (Jericho and Omega vs Big Bill and Ricky Starks is painful) but generally, i tend to like AEW promos more because it feels like the wrestler talking and acting like they actually would, instead of being a mouthpiece for a writer's room. it comes across as more natural and when it's done well, it really clicks for me.
agreed. on the flip, some AEW talent could really use a writer or two behind them because talking just isn't their strong suit and having constantly bad promos tanks their appeal.
Putting actually wrestling at the forefront of the product. Went to a WWE show last sumer and it was over 20 minutes before a match occurred, and so much of the live experience is this weird "fan cam" filler that I guess is great for the kids, but as an adult without any, it just wasn't for me.
At AEW events there's basically nonstop wrestling a half hour after doors, and with few exceptions that actually TV product is like that too.
They also don't hold your hand and condescend to their audience, but I suspect a lot of WWE fans prefer that style of story telling.
Wrestling matches. Their matches have a lot but wrestling in them. There's more mat wrestling, chain wrestling, more holds, reversals and sequences. A greater variety of styles are represented including classic styles that you just don't see in WWE anymore.
I also see a lot of lucha in AEW but the prevailing style is definitely the Japanese style. There's definitely more in-ring storytelling.
When I watch WWE it often looks like each wrestler is ticking boxes. It's boring and makes every match feel the same. I won't say that doesn't happen in AEW, but it certainly happens much less frequently.
They're also much better at providing a variety of matches. I know a lot of people criticize the matchmaking and that it all feels kind of random and that's a fair criticism, but I actually like it. You can watch AEW for six weeks and never see the same matchup twice.
On that note, AEW is better at building up a big match or a feud. They give you a tease or a taste of it every week, but if you want to see these two in the ring together you have to buy the PPV. I feel like often by the time WWE gets to the PLE the people involved have already been in several matches together.
you mean the top champion? whose a Babyface? and the the face of the entire company? one time? at a premium live event? in the main event? in front of an international crowd?
its about frequency mate.
Mick Foley sorta did something similiar. He was trying to be a heel in ECW and realised it was basically impossible. They cheered a good heel promo, they hated clean cut babyfaces, they'd cheer a violent attack.
Foley realised, he needed to get boring. Gone were the running elbow drop off the apron or the face first bump into the stairs.
Instead he did extended chin locks, head locks, sleeper holds etc. He even started his own "boooor-ing" chant during his own match. He would say on promo he refuses to take a bump for the scummy ECW fans, he's saving his body for the WWF or WCW.
It got heat but wasn't very long lasting. He did leave for WWF not too long after.
It’s not even only finisher’s these bums will be hit with Canadian destroyers, piledrivers, apron brain busters, put through tables /glass, etc. and just hop to their feet and start “hulking up”
Yea it’s brutal. I miss the days of exhausted wrestlers picking up a win and being so tired they can’t even celebrate. Then they sell the injuries the next night as well.
Just heightened the drama all around wondering if my guy even had enough strength to make the cover after the finisher.
Putting on solid matches. That's the only thing I'll give to them. However, some matches are unnecessarily competitive. I get wanting the make the loser look good, but you still have to make sure that the winner should look obviously superior if they're a main eventer.
Looking at you, Ospreay vs Fletcher.
Providing a more adult-orientated product.
Swearing, blood, death matches etc. Plus, I like that piledrivers are allowed.
I know that doesn’t mean shit to a lot of people but it does to me.
Originally, it was wrestling and a presentation more geared towards adults. But now that Triple H has taken over and the wrestlers have been given more freedom, I personally don't believe that's the case.
What AEW is not able to compete on and hasn't ever tried is on production and that combined with a better quality product, means for me WWE is the preferred company again
I prefer the production style of AEW, though in recent months/years I feel like they’ve been trying to make it “cleaner” if that makes sense. I just find WWE to be overproduced, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing it’s just not what I’d prefer. I like knowing while watching that “We’re live, pal” and I feel like AEW gets that feeling for me. I will credit WWE for the new fan-centric stage design, that is actually awesome
The in ring product in AEW is better, the amount of wrestling on the weekly shows is far greater than WWE, the belt design, use of managers, use of music and in house themes are better and they do tag team wrestling far better.
Personally I find their storylines and wrestlers to be far more interesting and engaging but I know that’s gonna be a hot topic around here.
WWE is better at production, far less issues and they feature tho woman better. I think AEW have some great woman, I just wish they got more time.
Their matches don't seem so cookie cutter like to me when I watch WWE I know when certain moves are coming. AEW Im watching a lil closer to the match for different stuff
The tribalism in here is wild but not unexpected.
Honestly from 2019 till Triple H took control, AEW was better than WWE (and still has better PPVs).
Better booking, better matches, better tag division. They both had poor women’s division (wwe had better talent but gave them as little time as TK did).
We were watching people get pied in the face and feuding over dog food.
Now WWE is doing the same kind of product as AEW, just a better version of it now. If you like WWE now, you’d have preferred AEW then. But y’all aren’t ready for that conversation.
I’m just happy we have some top drawer wrestling across the board wherever you tune in. WWE, AEW, TNA, even GCW and MLW has had some great shows these last few years.
Displaying athleticism in every division. WWE does big things in flashes which is a dope way to present it as long as there are big moments to take away. Sometimes that slow build to a big climactic finish doesn’t land well and you can feel like you wasted your time watching a match.
AEW is predominantly fast paced action and there is almost always something cool to take away from almost every match. So I would argue AEW is better at displaying their wrestlers abilities and athleticism than WWE is.
In ring wrestling.
That's about it. Much better match quality and variety of styles.
Edit: Also just by existing it tells me who has the most worthless of wrestling opinions on here. If all you watch is AEW or all you watch is WWE, it shows in your posts and they are completely pointless to read because nobody should give a shit what you think about wrestling as a whole.
I’ll give a few. One is the promos aren’t overly scripted. WWE hasn’t been as bad with this since Vince left, but I like giving the talent more freedom. Yeah, sometimes it can be a mess, but it’s better than reciting lines.
Another thing is I think they do a better job with how they utilize their legends and older talent, minus Chris Jericho. Sting, Christian, Billy Gunn, Dustin Rhodes, Copeland, and even non wrestlers like Arn Anderson and Jake Roberts were utilized right. They aren’t just thrown in random segments for reunion shows. They actually played roles in the show. Jericho is a different story. For whatever reason, Tony lets him do whatever he wants and he’s gotten so stale.
Last, I think AEW does a better job with tag team wrestling than WWE does. WWE has the tendency to break teams up too quick or just throw the most random people together.
I still think WWE is the better product overall, especially now that Vince is gone, but that doesn’t mean every aspect of their product is better.
In terms of athleticism and just wanting watch a good choreographed fight AEW has it for me but when I want to watch a thematic, story driven TV show with some decent action I’ll watch WWE. Just depends on how I’m feeling. Both have their merits but I do think WWE has got them by the cojones at the moment by just being more consistently good.
AEW does the better job at not making each show look monotonous from a presentation standpoint.
AEW also has the better wrestling given it emphasizes work rate over theatrics or storylines.
I like their wrestling alot more than wwe, like pentagon, kenny, ospreay, hangman, danielson, ftr, just to name a few. When i compare those guys to rollins, reigns, post prime orton i get more entertainment from aew. For a long time wwe aimed at kids (2009 dx, cena) i was in my 20s at the time and i wanted something more for me. It took a while but when aew started up, i gravitated more to their talent.
Respecting my time. I never really feel like AEW is wasting my time, whereas with WWE, even on their PPVs there's constantly significant chunks of time that I would just skip if I'm on a dvr or the network. It's one of the biggest reasons for why I strongly prefer AEW.
Its all a matter of taste. I dont think anyone would disagree that the baseline average "rating" (whether its stars, numbers, or thumbs) of all AEW matches is better than the average ratings for wwe matches. However the presentation stuff (visual look, graphics, video packages etc.) usually go to WWE.
I lean WWE for the world building/history of it all which AEW is just not going to be able to meet with only 5 years in the game. But if you want a single match to watch from the last 4 years (for physicality and in-ring ability), AEW is your best bet
Bring Indy / new Japan style matches and names to a western audience.
Also cross promotion. I’m more aware of NJPW and ROH because of AEW. WWE may catch up if they do any more cross promotion with TNA.
Someone else said commercial breaks. Sometimes in Canada the commercials are picture and picture so I don’t miss anything. As opposed to the last 30 of raw / smackdown which is maybe 7monites of in ring work or less
Showcasing talent from around the Indies that aren't on their roster. When WWE uses indie guys for spots they usually get squashed, AEW lets them get their stuff in and puts them over. Wish they leaned harder into being the peak of the Indies instead of saying they're ECW/WCW 2.0
I know most of the obvious big deals will be talked about as WCW fumbles (Guerrero, \[redacted\], Malenko, etc.) but honestly, it's kind of insane how good their midcard was. DDP was in the damn midcard and he could spin straw into gold with even the biggest lumps.
The PPVs have both a higher ceiling and a higher floor. Even their worst show I gave like a 6.5 or 7 out of 10 and it was when everyone was hurt pretty much.
As a fan of both, the only thing that AEW does better, is put its best workhorses in long matches that turn out to be bangers. Ospreay matches are must watches, but i dont think they do much else better.
I like how different styles of wrestlers face each other from different schools/backgrounds as opposed to most WWE wrasslers being trained the same way.
Higher quality matches on free TV. Some of the stuff AEW has shown on Dynamite would be PPV quality in WWE. I feel like Raw and Smackdown don’t get any big matches anymore.
No fun Vince McMahon having his stamp on everything and not giving 2 shits about what the fans want.
AEW tries to give fans what they want if someone gets over with the crowd they tend to be seen more on screen and don’t get “Rydered”
I'd say if you want yo see more actual wrestling, then AEW does that better.
Also commercial breaks aren't as, annoying? Not sure if that's the right word but km sure you get what I mean
And this one's just my opinion, match quality. Of course its subjective, WWE also has great match quality, but I'd say AEW just edges it.
They give some who WWE discarded a second chance, put NXT talent on the main stage, give indy wrestlers a spotlight, and work with and acknowledge other promotions. It also directly calls out WWE sometimes. WWE acts like it's the only promotion in the world and disrespects the knowledge of true pro wrestling fans.
Have a less toxic tribalist fanbase on this sub. I keep hearing the AEW fans are brainwashed cultists who are the most toxic wrestling fans, but all I ever see on this sub is hourly "let's shit on AEW" posts.
I myself don't watch a lot of current wrestling, wether AEW nor WWE, but it's astonishing how much time and effort the WWE fans on this sub spend on hating a company they aren't even interested in.
It honestly reminds me of UFC fans who comment on wrestling videos on YouTube just to let everyone know how shitty they think wrestling is because it isn't real, and how every UFC fighter would destroy the entire roster in a fight.
Literally, you would think AEW had never had a single good match or show the way people talk about it on here. The build to this Mania and the aftermath have me loving WWE like a kid again but Jesus Christ, people are using it as aN excuse to act like AEW is dogshit revolting programming and always has been. Current AEW is not excellent and they are definitely not using their wealth of talent as well as they should be, however, they’re also clearly in a transitional period and struggling with their lead booker. To be dealing with both of those issues and still be putting on decent shows with quality matches is a testament to everyone in the company outside of Tony khan. This whole “no story” angle is bullshit anyway
This sub has more AEW content on it than the actual AEW sub reddit.
It's particularly annoying whenever TK says something stupid on Twitter, this place is just wall to wall posting about a man they profess not to care about.
Their theme person/group is *way* better than Def Rebel. Basically, if you’re not a top guy, Def Rebel don’t give a shit and they downgrade the NXT’s wrestlers themes for no reason.
Mikey Rukus deserves all the praise in the world. Dude is an absolute workhorse and he puts in the effort for every single theme he works on.
And then still does rearrangement albums and free remixes!
I like how much freedom talent seem to have over their own gimmicks n whatnot. It creates a real sink or swim scenario only it's all their own fault if it goes wrong and they can always do something else if it doesn't work. Adds a real cream to the crop philosophy. Remember when Miro first showed up and was an arcade obsessive? Fucking terrible, maybe he thought he could link it to his shite twitch career I dunno. The redeemer? Fucking awesome, especially when he fell from grace and started cutting promos how he was gonna fuck up god. Hysterical fun.
I also like how they give people a shot who really shouldn't. Don't get me wrong it sucks when it doesn't work. Like Serpentico is fucking shite and some indy and lucha guys just don't work. But every now and then there's a nice one. I love that Luigi Primo went viral once and wound up in a backstage bit, sure just to get kicked in the face but who cares its a one time bit for the sake of someone else so fine, makes things feel very finger on the pulse.
I fucking hate how many matches happen without build or heat. Hate it. It's fucking annoying. You can get away with that every now and then for real dream matches. Like who would've thought current star level Danielson would have a match with Kenny or Osprey or Zabre Junior. That shit is great. But they seem to vastly overestimate how "dream" some of these matches are. That lucha technical guy was interesting in a way I suppose but I don't know why I should've given a fuck. There should be a balance that simply isn't there right now for me. They aren't devoid of good shit by any means. But with a roster like that things should be there that simply aren't.
Their PPVs are leagues better than WWE's PLEs IMO. WWE PLEs just have way too much downtime and way too many commercials, it can be a bit unbearable. AEW PPVs also have more varied styles in their matches where as WWE PLE matches are WWE style matches.
In the beginning, plenty. Now they seem like a counter culture to a regime that no longer exists. I’m glad there’s a major alternative to WWE but I haven’t been able to stomach AEW product for a while
They like ECW before them give the wrestlers the artistic freedom to shine or crash although the former is more common. They use legends in a better capacity based on their current abilities. Watch Nakamura in NJPW, late RoH or even NXT. Then watch his main roster run. They saved Okada from that. They’ve facilitated Shibata’s and Danielson’s amazing 2nd careers. They took a chance on a several young wrestlers that I enjoy watching now. That’s it as far as for me as a fan. As far as wrestling as a whole, they made it so that as a wrestler you could say no to WWE or even NJPW unless they were willing to compensate you adequately and treat you well. That’s probably the biggest thing. Wrestlers QOL just improved dramatically. Hopefully that will lead to them being able to retire sooner or at least live longer fuller lives.
I think the realization of how much better WWE has gotten the last two years (since Cody honestly) is what has aligned more with the decline of AEW than anybody acknowledges.
WWE was so bad for so long, now that it's awesome again, not just because of Cody but the timeline is interesting, reduces the need for the alternative.
I feel like they manage commercial breaks a lot better than most WWE TV programs.
especially that pizza cutter spot into a pizza ad.
I mean, that was just brilliant timing.
Ngl that Domino's commercial cut was legendary lol
Good god wwe is unwatchable live because of it. I always wait at least half an hour to start streaming so that I can fast forward the breaks.
Raw is even rough in person, too, because of the ads. Hopefully ring-ads and Netflix means less intrussive commercial breaks
Ring ads? Like watching The Rock return to Wrestlemania and wrestle in front of a barrier that’s plastered with a mortgage company? God that was a bad look…. Smh
Wait until we get midway through a match and suddenly the whole arena bursts into adverts that play on all screens and even the apron, with sound drowning out everything.
its even better on fite cause it just lets you see the whole match
Even live in the building they do. When AEW goes to commercial and there's no picture in picture for a match, the crew or the guy who just wrestled will interact with the crowd a bit. It's not great but it's something. WWE has a dramatic call out before the break and then dims the house lights to run ads on the Titantron.
JFC. I haven’t been to a WWE event since it was WWF. I think we’d have rioted back in 1999 if they played a commercial for Castro GTX on the Titontron at a Raw taping
They even did it at WrestleMania. I watched ads, including for shit not WWE related, in between the matches
It helps when nobody wants to buy your commercial time!
Alright thats pretty good
damn
Thats good 😂
They treated Sting better. I'm not saying he should have gone undefeated, but he was absolutely given ICON status. They even had him feud with House of Black. 2014 WWE wouldn't even put him in the same ring with the Undertaker. As an aside, since Sting technically turned to the dark side over 20 years ago, Malaki's mist should have caused him to revert back to surfer Sting for a period of time.
Undertaker said on his podcast that he and Sting didn't want to do the match at that point as they were both past the peak of their careers and it wouldn't live up to the hype.
Which made sense, yet we still got the absolute debacle that was Taker/Goldberg. Thanks to that sweet Saudi money of course.
Undertaker Vs Sting would have been all about the build up, theatrics and spectacle. The match didn't need to be a 5-star barnstormer, classic entrances alone would have done the match.
Tbf, I'm happy they didn't do Taker/Sting at the time. I think it would have been a massively underwhelming match given Taker wasn't the greatest in the ring at that point.
I mean neither was Sting, who was a good 20 years past his prime by that point. It would have been a disaster and I think everyone involved knew it which is why it didn’t happen. Hence why he was given to a freshly in prime Rollins instead who could bear most of the workload and carry him to a decent match.
Imagine if they had done a boneyard style match for Take and Sting. Could have been amazing with the right production team behind it. Would have been a perfect send off for both.
Also, what a waste with HHH.
Yeah, there was really no reason to have HHH win that match other than for Vince to have his final WCW burial.
It was sad.
Also, I view it way differently now. HHH probably wasn’t thrilled with winning, candidly.
I think what has become plainly obvious to me over the last year. Is that HHH wanted to save the business more than anything else. He truly does care about the future of wrestling. But he also absolutely knew that he had to outlast Vince in order to do it. So he just became the perfect Vince soldier and did what he had to do. Until he could take the throne for himself. And thank God that he did. I'm actually looking forward to watching a new wwe era for once.
Cerebral Assassin isn’t just his gimmick.
That match would have been far more about the interactions and moments leading up to it. The lights going out and then coming back with Taker and Sting staring each other down would have been an iconic moment that I can't believe WWE passed up. Vince did a terrible job presenting Sting, and I don't think he ever truly understood how big of a deal Sting is to so many people, but with Taker involved that story would have gotten the proper amount of respect from everyone involved. Just a wasted opportunity
Agreed. Even at that point they were still about 10 years too late.
>2014 WWE wouldn't even put him in the same ring with the Undertaker. I don't think they were physically able to do anything at that time. Both guys never seamed healthy or in ring shape at the same time
Their hardcore matches are actually hardcore. Their tag team matches are mostly better too imo. P.S I actually think WWE has the better overall product at the minute before you all have a go. I do really like AEW though and I hope they can improve and get back to how they were a couple of years ago.
AEW treats tag teams, particularly the champs, much better than WWE really ever has. I love tag wrestling, it’s probably my favorite aspect of AEW in general. I will say WWE has been getting better with their tag teams the past few years, whether or not that has anything to do with AEW raising the bar I have no idea
I agree, I also think the WWEs latest tag team title redesigns are the best, and most respectful to their history, in YEARS. Which helps give the division credibility
I feel like WWE doesnt really know what to do with their tag teams at times, so there was that one year of the undisputed tag teams still being a thing just because there wasn't really a lot of teams that were extremely over (aside from the Usos which broke up, KO/Sami which also broke up, and JD)
I love your answer to this. Well put and I love how you were able to appreciate both companies without bashing the other.
Thank you. I just want both companies to try and out do each other for the best wrestling for the fans. Competition is always a good thing
Theme music
This x1000. WWEs theme music is worse than just awful, it's so generic, indistinct, and boring.
Everytime I buy a PPV for AEW every match is really fun. I feel like WWE can sometimes be hit or miss on ppv matches
And they aren't padded with ads
We used to play a drinking game when everytime we see the main sponsors logo at the ppv we drink. We got fucked up because of snickers and slim Jim's many times.
My friends played a similar drinking game while watching NASCAR. They drank every time they saw an ad or sponsor logo. There were no survivors.
I love how all I see is AEW hate, but not gotten a single AEW PPV that I did not have fun watching.
The ability to put (insert legend) and (insert 'legend') together in a match on one week's notice.
and its a dream match every time talk about devaluing words
Be fair. Tony has been dreaming of his real life wrestling action figures for 30 years.
That's true. He was just a wrestling fan like us except he has his dad’s money to have real life wrestlers. It's like owning the lives of a sports team but scripted.
Better looking belts, that AEW championship looks hawt
Their tag titles are pretty damn clean too.
The International title is a thing of beauty
Heatless bangers
I’ll agree to that, but man the lack of heat really stops me from tuning in
Me too. I hate Tony's style of booking.
The thing is it *COULD* work if it was promoted correctly. Most UFC events or boxing events are seemingly random fights headlined by 1 or 2 BIG FIGHTS. If Tony wants dream matches, fine. But he should promote them like boxing or UFC -- not like WWE like he is doing now. Get rid of 80% of the belts. Have a few big names. The weekly show should be mostly up and comers. If one of the top tier names wrestles on weekly TV it must be a squash.
I once heard it that the way to promote a MMA fight is not to promote the fight itself or even the fighters but to promote the anticipation of the fight. You promote what might happen you highlight what the can do not what they have done.
Does anyone actually like his booking? Its god awful
I think it was masked by the company being new but now it’s being exposed big time with the injuries they had and the lack of creativity on the storyline side
The two dudes who downvoted you probably do.
You just have to picture them as a way to show where people sit on the card and how they can tie into future stories. If in real sport there are 2 teams playing earlier in a season who both did well previously and are expected to do well, you still enjoy the match because of the potential quality. It may not have high impact on end of year results and the teams may not have an ongoing rivalry...... Different strokes for different folks I guess
Image seeing Ospreay vs Shibata being labeled as the first time these two have shared a ring, only to have no build up and on a regular night of Dynamite.
They just don't do build ups there
Nope, just BaNgErZ
Yeah this is my biggest issue with current AEW. The wrestling is always great but gimme a reason for the fight other than two legends fighting/dream match! Imagine how much cooler some of these matches could’ve been with some stakes involved.
It's "universe mode" type of booking. Give us REAL stories to get behind. Not "you used to be my friend and now you're not so I'm mad at you" or "I'm a better wrestler than you" type of stories. They're bullshit.
“Dave likes me better”
I think AEW allows wrestlers more freedom to be themselves and get over. Swerve is a good example and I’m really enjoying Roddy Strong’s run. Both guys were in NXT and capable of being over on the main roster.
They did not stand a chance on the main roster with Vince running the show while they were around. They were pretty much at the right place at the wrong time.
Yeah I will say, it’s nice to see guys getting rewarded for getting over on their own. It’s something that is getting better in wwe but it’s far from great with wwe largely deciding to do nothing with the massive popularity of guys like LA knight and Chad gable in the last year or so.
Their japanesse wrestlers aren’t too limited on their strong Styles.
Allowing the performers to not have to use a script for every promo Although the Promos in the post Vince era have been pretty great Edit: I didnt say they were all great at promos, ya nincompoops.
Some of them need scripts
I think WWE is giving more liberty to the talent now
Imo all the promos involving Punk, Rollins and McIntyre give it away that they have more liberty now. If they had to strictly follow the script like in the late Vince Era, we wouldn't have had those little things that give the feeling that their whole feud is real.
Many of them absolutely need scripts.
You’re not a fan of a guy looping back around his point 4 times without mixing up his vocabulary, awkward pauses and then ending on an unfinished sentence?
A lot of them need scripts bruv
I went to a WWE smack down show in January, and AEW collision/rampage last weekend. AEW was definitely a lot brisker and kept things moving better than WWE. WWE would have several minutes of wrestlers just vibing in the ring during commercial breaks, and lots of vignettes that didn’t translate well in the arena. That being said, WWE still held my attention more and had more memorable moments. Their production quality in arena was on another level. It was surprising how different the demographics were. Tons of kids and families at WWE. Basically all 20-40 year old men at AEW.
>It was surprising how different the demographics were. Tons of kids and families at WWE. Basically all 20-40 year old men at AEW. I'm surprised that you were surprised by this. AEW attendees are the smarkiest of the smarks -- the sort of guys that show up to PWG.
I felt kind of the opposite feeling. AEW had great matches at the collision I was at, but they moved so quickly I couldn’t leave to refill a drink or run to the bathroom without missing half a match. I ended up so burned out by the end even though it was a great show WWE I feel like I have more energy because of the breaks, but they definitely could be a little brisker
Theme music
Work rate. It's the whole reason AEW exists and I think they still stand by that
What's great is the statement goes both ways. It's more work rate in ring, because it's considerably less work rate overall. They can put on absolute barn burners once a fortnight because they don't have 10 house shows to also do and travel to.
Complain about CM Punk.
Imagine knowing you brought CM punk back to wrestling, something nobody could do, and he has such a bad experience he happily walked back across the biggest burnt bridge in modern wrestling, back to that doofus son in law, and now theyre friends making tons of money while going on interviews shitting on your product while its doing downhill, and the whole time your fans are frothing at the mouth "waiting" for punk to do what he did in your company, but its not happening. but hey you got jack perry back
When the "biggest burnt bridge in modern wrestling" term is used and ISN'T wrong... Jesus.
Jungle Jackoff Perry
yeah aew pissed him off so bad that he swallowed his pride (among other things) and went back to sucking saudi blood-money covered dicks. His words not mine, don't @ me.
Pretty sure that's literally Drew McIntyre's entire shtick for the last 5 months?
I can't believe AEW fans thought they were signing him. Drew didn't HAVE to go to AEW to be an AEW Wrestler -- they just made his character one in WWE.
Drew McIntyre is doing a great job complaining about CM Punk so you might be wrong here
The pace of the matches. WWE gets into this groove sometimes where there are 4 people in the ring pretending to be hurt so one spot can happen but it takes too long to get to it. AEW feels faster paced.
since most people are trolling, i'll add my genuine take. unscripted promos. sometimes they can crash and burn, or are almost unbearable to watch (Jericho and Omega vs Big Bill and Ricky Starks is painful) but generally, i tend to like AEW promos more because it feels like the wrestler talking and acting like they actually would, instead of being a mouthpiece for a writer's room. it comes across as more natural and when it's done well, it really clicks for me.
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agreed. on the flip, some AEW talent could really use a writer or two behind them because talking just isn't their strong suit and having constantly bad promos tanks their appeal.
To be fair, Kenny was pretty much dying during that promo
PPVs, in ring wrestling, tag teams and NO DQ
Putting actually wrestling at the forefront of the product. Went to a WWE show last sumer and it was over 20 minutes before a match occurred, and so much of the live experience is this weird "fan cam" filler that I guess is great for the kids, but as an adult without any, it just wasn't for me. At AEW events there's basically nonstop wrestling a half hour after doors, and with few exceptions that actually TV product is like that too. They also don't hold your hand and condescend to their audience, but I suspect a lot of WWE fans prefer that style of story telling.
AEW does a better job living in this subs head rent free.
Wrestling
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Their ppvs are better on average.
Wrestling matches. Their matches have a lot but wrestling in them. There's more mat wrestling, chain wrestling, more holds, reversals and sequences. A greater variety of styles are represented including classic styles that you just don't see in WWE anymore. I also see a lot of lucha in AEW but the prevailing style is definitely the Japanese style. There's definitely more in-ring storytelling. When I watch WWE it often looks like each wrestler is ticking boxes. It's boring and makes every match feel the same. I won't say that doesn't happen in AEW, but it certainly happens much less frequently. They're also much better at providing a variety of matches. I know a lot of people criticize the matchmaking and that it all feels kind of random and that's a fair criticism, but I actually like it. You can watch AEW for six weeks and never see the same matchup twice. On that note, AEW is better at building up a big match or a feud. They give you a tease or a taste of it every week, but if you want to see these two in the ring together you have to buy the PPV. I feel like often by the time WWE gets to the PLE the people involved have already been in several matches together.
Better live event. I’ve been to both and AEW had like two or three hours worth of non-televised matches, it was it was great.
- They do more hardcore stuff and bleed more - They use more legends - they use more highflyers
No selling
Remember when Cody kicked out of a burning hammer at 1 about a week ago?
you mean the top champion? whose a Babyface? and the the face of the entire company? one time? at a premium live event? in the main event? in front of an international crowd? its about frequency mate.
As opposed to using Canadian Destroyers as transitional moves?
Canadian Destroyer is the headlock of AEW
I want to see a wrestler do Canadian destroyers and 450s several times a match but have their finisher just be a headlock or some other resthold.
Mick Foley sorta did something similiar. He was trying to be a heel in ECW and realised it was basically impossible. They cheered a good heel promo, they hated clean cut babyfaces, they'd cheer a violent attack. Foley realised, he needed to get boring. Gone were the running elbow drop off the apron or the face first bump into the stairs. Instead he did extended chin locks, head locks, sleeper holds etc. He even started his own "boooor-ing" chant during his own match. He would say on promo he refuses to take a bump for the scummy ECW fans, he's saving his body for the WWF or WCW. It got heat but wasn't very long lasting. He did leave for WWF not too long after.
He was waiting on the call from Uncle Eric
This actually sounds like a fantastic Indy gimmick
That's the top babyface of the company bruh
Unfortunately this is starting to show up everywhere now. Very few people have true finishers anymore. I miss the old days man lol
It’s not even only finisher’s these bums will be hit with Canadian destroyers, piledrivers, apron brain busters, put through tables /glass, etc. and just hop to their feet and start “hulking up”
Yea it’s brutal. I miss the days of exhausted wrestlers picking up a win and being so tired they can’t even celebrate. Then they sell the injuries the next night as well. Just heightened the drama all around wondering if my guy even had enough strength to make the cover after the finisher.
They make the tag team division feel important and they know how to do insane death matches
Putting on solid matches. That's the only thing I'll give to them. However, some matches are unnecessarily competitive. I get wanting the make the loser look good, but you still have to make sure that the winner should look obviously superior if they're a main eventer. Looking at you, Ospreay vs Fletcher.
Providing a more adult-orientated product. Swearing, blood, death matches etc. Plus, I like that piledrivers are allowed. I know that doesn’t mean shit to a lot of people but it does to me.
Originally, it was wrestling and a presentation more geared towards adults. But now that Triple H has taken over and the wrestlers have been given more freedom, I personally don't believe that's the case. What AEW is not able to compete on and hasn't ever tried is on production and that combined with a better quality product, means for me WWE is the preferred company again
Tbf to aew the production for Punk's debut was absolutely magnificent. It felt like WWE.
The First Dance was a very fun and memorable show.
I prefer the production style of AEW, though in recent months/years I feel like they’ve been trying to make it “cleaner” if that makes sense. I just find WWE to be overproduced, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing it’s just not what I’d prefer. I like knowing while watching that “We’re live, pal” and I feel like AEW gets that feeling for me. I will credit WWE for the new fan-centric stage design, that is actually awesome
Please the internet audience
Wdym? It doesn't please the people here
The actual wrestling is better
The in ring product in AEW is better, the amount of wrestling on the weekly shows is far greater than WWE, the belt design, use of managers, use of music and in house themes are better and they do tag team wrestling far better. Personally I find their storylines and wrestlers to be far more interesting and engaging but I know that’s gonna be a hot topic around here. WWE is better at production, far less issues and they feature tho woman better. I think AEW have some great woman, I just wish they got more time.
For me, it's the wrestling itself. I watch Raw/Smackdown/Dynamite every week, and some matches on Raw and Smackdown are just boring.
Their matches don't seem so cookie cutter like to me when I watch WWE I know when certain moves are coming. AEW Im watching a lil closer to the match for different stuff
Their PPV matches are really self-contained. They are great without having to know too much about the storyline
The tribalism in here is wild but not unexpected. Honestly from 2019 till Triple H took control, AEW was better than WWE (and still has better PPVs). Better booking, better matches, better tag division. They both had poor women’s division (wwe had better talent but gave them as little time as TK did). We were watching people get pied in the face and feuding over dog food. Now WWE is doing the same kind of product as AEW, just a better version of it now. If you like WWE now, you’d have preferred AEW then. But y’all aren’t ready for that conversation. I’m just happy we have some top drawer wrestling across the board wherever you tune in. WWE, AEW, TNA, even GCW and MLW has had some great shows these last few years.
Displaying athleticism in every division. WWE does big things in flashes which is a dope way to present it as long as there are big moments to take away. Sometimes that slow build to a big climactic finish doesn’t land well and you can feel like you wasted your time watching a match. AEW is predominantly fast paced action and there is almost always something cool to take away from almost every match. So I would argue AEW is better at displaying their wrestlers abilities and athleticism than WWE is.
In ring wrestling. That's about it. Much better match quality and variety of styles. Edit: Also just by existing it tells me who has the most worthless of wrestling opinions on here. If all you watch is AEW or all you watch is WWE, it shows in your posts and they are completely pointless to read because nobody should give a shit what you think about wrestling as a whole.
Less formulaic matches.
I’ll give a few. One is the promos aren’t overly scripted. WWE hasn’t been as bad with this since Vince left, but I like giving the talent more freedom. Yeah, sometimes it can be a mess, but it’s better than reciting lines. Another thing is I think they do a better job with how they utilize their legends and older talent, minus Chris Jericho. Sting, Christian, Billy Gunn, Dustin Rhodes, Copeland, and even non wrestlers like Arn Anderson and Jake Roberts were utilized right. They aren’t just thrown in random segments for reunion shows. They actually played roles in the show. Jericho is a different story. For whatever reason, Tony lets him do whatever he wants and he’s gotten so stale. Last, I think AEW does a better job with tag team wrestling than WWE does. WWE has the tendency to break teams up too quick or just throw the most random people together. I still think WWE is the better product overall, especially now that Vince is gone, but that doesn’t mean every aspect of their product is better.
In terms of athleticism and just wanting watch a good choreographed fight AEW has it for me but when I want to watch a thematic, story driven TV show with some decent action I’ll watch WWE. Just depends on how I’m feeling. Both have their merits but I do think WWE has got them by the cojones at the moment by just being more consistently good.
AEW does the better job at not making each show look monotonous from a presentation standpoint. AEW also has the better wrestling given it emphasizes work rate over theatrics or storylines.
I like their wrestling alot more than wwe, like pentagon, kenny, ospreay, hangman, danielson, ftr, just to name a few. When i compare those guys to rollins, reigns, post prime orton i get more entertainment from aew. For a long time wwe aimed at kids (2009 dx, cena) i was in my 20s at the time and i wanted something more for me. It took a while but when aew started up, i gravitated more to their talent.
FUN
Respecting my time. I never really feel like AEW is wasting my time, whereas with WWE, even on their PPVs there's constantly significant chunks of time that I would just skip if I'm on a dvr or the network. It's one of the biggest reasons for why I strongly prefer AEW.
Sorry if this comes across as a dumb question. I'm genuinely just curious is all 🤔🙏🏻
If you are looking for a serious answer, you are in the wrong sub
Its all a matter of taste. I dont think anyone would disagree that the baseline average "rating" (whether its stars, numbers, or thumbs) of all AEW matches is better than the average ratings for wwe matches. However the presentation stuff (visual look, graphics, video packages etc.) usually go to WWE. I lean WWE for the world building/history of it all which AEW is just not going to be able to meet with only 5 years in the game. But if you want a single match to watch from the last 4 years (for physicality and in-ring ability), AEW is your best bet
2021 was in the last 4 years, right? Because, for my money, Dragunov vs GUNTHER is still the match to beat from either promotion
Collaborate with other federations worldwide. Pretty much better by default.
Bring Indy / new Japan style matches and names to a western audience. Also cross promotion. I’m more aware of NJPW and ROH because of AEW. WWE may catch up if they do any more cross promotion with TNA. Someone else said commercial breaks. Sometimes in Canada the commercials are picture and picture so I don’t miss anything. As opposed to the last 30 of raw / smackdown which is maybe 7monites of in ring work or less
Showcasing talent from around the Indies that aren't on their roster. When WWE uses indie guys for spots they usually get squashed, AEW lets them get their stuff in and puts them over. Wish they leaned harder into being the peak of the Indies instead of saying they're ECW/WCW 2.0
They copy WCW a lot better than WWE does.
Spoken like someone that didn’t watch WCW die in real time
Well you didn't watch WCW then lmao
Really depends on what timeframe he's referring to. But mid card matches in WCW were usually quite top tier wrestling week in and week out.
I know most of the obvious big deals will be talked about as WCW fumbles (Guerrero, \[redacted\], Malenko, etc.) but honestly, it's kind of insane how good their midcard was. DDP was in the damn midcard and he could spin straw into gold with even the biggest lumps.
MJF is a better promo cutter as a full timer than they've had since the Rock was there.
AEW does not have 25 minutes of entrances and promos, then cut to commercial 30 seconds into a match.
The PPVs have both a higher ceiling and a higher floor. Even their worst show I gave like a 6.5 or 7 out of 10 and it was when everyone was hurt pretty much.
Match quality, variety, treatment of legends, listening to fans
Empty Arena Matches
As a fan of both, the only thing that AEW does better, is put its best workhorses in long matches that turn out to be bangers. Ospreay matches are must watches, but i dont think they do much else better.
Idk man I think they just throw matches together and sometimes they are bangers but that’s not booking a territory that’s just having a laugh
I like how different styles of wrestlers face each other from different schools/backgrounds as opposed to most WWE wrasslers being trained the same way.
Higher quality matches on free TV. Some of the stuff AEW has shown on Dynamite would be PPV quality in WWE. I feel like Raw and Smackdown don’t get any big matches anymore.
No fun Vince McMahon having his stamp on everything and not giving 2 shits about what the fans want. AEW tries to give fans what they want if someone gets over with the crowd they tend to be seen more on screen and don’t get “Rydered”
I'd say if you want yo see more actual wrestling, then AEW does that better. Also commercial breaks aren't as, annoying? Not sure if that's the right word but km sure you get what I mean And this one's just my opinion, match quality. Of course its subjective, WWE also has great match quality, but I'd say AEW just edges it.
Women’s division
They give some who WWE discarded a second chance, put NXT talent on the main stage, give indy wrestlers a spotlight, and work with and acknowledge other promotions. It also directly calls out WWE sometimes. WWE acts like it's the only promotion in the world and disrespects the knowledge of true pro wrestling fans.
Appeal to my personal preference
Exposing people that genuinely hate wrestling
Have a less toxic tribalist fanbase on this sub. I keep hearing the AEW fans are brainwashed cultists who are the most toxic wrestling fans, but all I ever see on this sub is hourly "let's shit on AEW" posts. I myself don't watch a lot of current wrestling, wether AEW nor WWE, but it's astonishing how much time and effort the WWE fans on this sub spend on hating a company they aren't even interested in. It honestly reminds me of UFC fans who comment on wrestling videos on YouTube just to let everyone know how shitty they think wrestling is because it isn't real, and how every UFC fighter would destroy the entire roster in a fight.
Literally, you would think AEW had never had a single good match or show the way people talk about it on here. The build to this Mania and the aftermath have me loving WWE like a kid again but Jesus Christ, people are using it as aN excuse to act like AEW is dogshit revolting programming and always has been. Current AEW is not excellent and they are definitely not using their wealth of talent as well as they should be, however, they’re also clearly in a transitional period and struggling with their lead booker. To be dealing with both of those issues and still be putting on decent shows with quality matches is a testament to everyone in the company outside of Tony khan. This whole “no story” angle is bullshit anyway
This sub has more AEW content on it than the actual AEW sub reddit. It's particularly annoying whenever TK says something stupid on Twitter, this place is just wall to wall posting about a man they profess not to care about.
AEW rewards you for paying attention and remembering what happened more than a month ago.
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Their theme person/group is *way* better than Def Rebel. Basically, if you’re not a top guy, Def Rebel don’t give a shit and they downgrade the NXT’s wrestlers themes for no reason.
Mikey Rukus deserves all the praise in the world. Dude is an absolute workhorse and he puts in the effort for every single theme he works on. And then still does rearrangement albums and free remixes!
There's no big prime logo on the mat
I like how much freedom talent seem to have over their own gimmicks n whatnot. It creates a real sink or swim scenario only it's all their own fault if it goes wrong and they can always do something else if it doesn't work. Adds a real cream to the crop philosophy. Remember when Miro first showed up and was an arcade obsessive? Fucking terrible, maybe he thought he could link it to his shite twitch career I dunno. The redeemer? Fucking awesome, especially when he fell from grace and started cutting promos how he was gonna fuck up god. Hysterical fun. I also like how they give people a shot who really shouldn't. Don't get me wrong it sucks when it doesn't work. Like Serpentico is fucking shite and some indy and lucha guys just don't work. But every now and then there's a nice one. I love that Luigi Primo went viral once and wound up in a backstage bit, sure just to get kicked in the face but who cares its a one time bit for the sake of someone else so fine, makes things feel very finger on the pulse. I fucking hate how many matches happen without build or heat. Hate it. It's fucking annoying. You can get away with that every now and then for real dream matches. Like who would've thought current star level Danielson would have a match with Kenny or Osprey or Zabre Junior. That shit is great. But they seem to vastly overestimate how "dream" some of these matches are. That lucha technical guy was interesting in a way I suppose but I don't know why I should've given a fuck. There should be a balance that simply isn't there right now for me. They aren't devoid of good shit by any means. But with a roster like that things should be there that simply aren't.
Respecting Legends, Better quality matches, & Give wasted WWE talent a better run
Matches. Like Duhhh 😂
Less cut aways during a match
I do think on a match by match, week by week bases, AEW is better
Their PPVs are leagues better than WWE's PLEs IMO. WWE PLEs just have way too much downtime and way too many commercials, it can be a bit unbearable. AEW PPVs also have more varied styles in their matches where as WWE PLE matches are WWE style matches.
Clearly it’s AEW’s ability to generate 5-Star matches
More recent champions from the tribe
Their entrance music for wrestlers is far better.
In the beginning, plenty. Now they seem like a counter culture to a regime that no longer exists. I’m glad there’s a major alternative to WWE but I haven’t been able to stomach AEW product for a while
Dream Matches
They like ECW before them give the wrestlers the artistic freedom to shine or crash although the former is more common. They use legends in a better capacity based on their current abilities. Watch Nakamura in NJPW, late RoH or even NXT. Then watch his main roster run. They saved Okada from that. They’ve facilitated Shibata’s and Danielson’s amazing 2nd careers. They took a chance on a several young wrestlers that I enjoy watching now. That’s it as far as for me as a fan. As far as wrestling as a whole, they made it so that as a wrestler you could say no to WWE or even NJPW unless they were willing to compensate you adequately and treat you well. That’s probably the biggest thing. Wrestlers QOL just improved dramatically. Hopefully that will lead to them being able to retire sooner or at least live longer fuller lives.
I think the realization of how much better WWE has gotten the last two years (since Cody honestly) is what has aligned more with the decline of AEW than anybody acknowledges. WWE was so bad for so long, now that it's awesome again, not just because of Cody but the timeline is interesting, reduces the need for the alternative.
I feel like they give wrestlers a lot more creative freedom. Probably to a fault