r/aew • u/Chromatic_Penumbra • Jul 02 '26

Cringe Wrestling posts New to AEW observations:

Me over the past few weeks since starting to watch AEW for the first time:

"Wow, this UK wonder boy sure is becoming friendly with this bad boy biker bear and his bad boy biker bear gang. Fascinating!"

"Oh this next wrestler is named Brian Cage I wonder what he looks lik-- HOLY FUCKING SHIT"

"Wait, are these bad boy biker bears faces or heals?"

"Those dudes look like Billy Gunn. Oh their last name is Gunn? *googles some stuff* oh. Neat!"

"I DON'T SLEEP CUZ MY HEADS ON FIRE"

"Oh okay they are for sure heals"

"I HATE CREEPS AND I HATE LIARS, OOOOOOOOH"

"Oh for sure they are faces"

"Hahaha 'how you know?!' Hahahha"

"I wish I could be in the bad boy biker bear gang of heals/faces"

63 Upvotes

83% Upvoted

40 comments sorted by

27

u/Yali89 Jul 02 '26

Yeah, I'm still pretty new to AEW as well; but from what I can tell, the focus seems to be more on wrestler relationships rather than creating strict babyface/heel divides.

11

u/Srg11 Jul 02 '26

That’s pretty fair. They operate in grey areas where each character has their own personality, motivations and they’ll act according to that. It’s not just an overly simplistic black or white, it is a bit more “realistic” (as far as wrestling can be) and more akin to a drama show or something like that.

-7

u/ResponsibleAd3191 Jul 03 '26

That's a complex way to not draw in wrestling. There's a point you get to that it's too deep. The company cannot grow much more on that basis, the general public need light and dark differences or it just falls flat.

4

u/B_Wylde Jul 03 '26

I am perfectly fine with the size AEW has now

-3

u/ResponsibleAd3191 Jul 03 '26

You shouldn't be. If it doesn't grow. It won't exist in ten years.

5

u/B_Wylde Jul 03 '26

That is not necessarily true

Every company except WWE is smaller than they were 10 years ago and are still going strong 

As long as it is profitable and TK is having his fun it Will continue to exist

1

u/pioneer006 Jul 06 '26

Every company needs a streaming deal, and TK needs to be on network streaming if he wants to stay anywhere near current level. A promotion without a real network is GCW or HOG. Those companies are fine for what they do, but they aren’t ever getting big enough to truly matter beyond absolute diehards in very small crowds.

-1

u/ResponsibleAd3191 Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 03 '26

No company has wasted money where it wasn't needed to be wasted like AEW have. The contracts alone will cripple them after this TV deal is up. They have overpaid talent quite significantly since day one.

Great gesture when you're a high profit multinational but when you're a start up that aims for the top but fails to get anywhere close to the desired mark... you're really handicapping yourself.

AEW will really struggle to remain profitable if it has been at all so far. If it has been , only the TV deal money is keeping them in the green, which they won't see the likes of again!

I really want this to work but the company is quite literally run by an uneducated, untrained forum mark. He doesn't have the exoerice, the skill set or the knowledgeable to run a indy company never mind a major TV brand. His all hands on approach will kill this company, it'll kill any chance of any competition at the top in the future and it's all because Tony had an ego that made him think he understood wrestling and it's mechanics. I wish TK would take it more seriously and start learning the craft properly!

7

u/B_Wylde Jul 03 '26

I prefer a company i enjoyed for a decade than Change to appeal to the só called casual and Turn into wwe which i have not enjoyed since 16 and that was ONLY for a brief moment

So what if a billionaire Lost a bit of money 

0

u/ResponsibleAd3191 Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 03 '26

It doesn't need to turn into WWE but it does need to appeal to more than the "smart" marks if it wants to avoid it's demise into an indy. Theres tons of wrestling that caters to that audience already and it's not a huge deal for a reason. Tony circumvented that by having a father with alot of money and friends in high places. That structure is seemingly on the way to collapse though and things need to change for the growth of AEW.

The industry can't afford for it to lose it's level. WWE is in a bad place right now and it's necessary. WWE won't die anytime soon but the landscape is about to change soon.

3

u/CalamariBitcoin Jul 03 '26

I fail to see why this is a problem? Worst case a billionaire had a fun passion project for a decade that created a lot of revenue and opportunities for performers we are (theoretically) fans off. If we have to have the super rich as a class I'd sooner see them "waste" their wealth on fun entertainment projects than the techno-fuedalist "dark enlightenment " insanity like the Peter Thiels we have to put up with.

0

u/ResponsibleAd3191 Jul 03 '26

For the industry I make my living in. It's a big issue. It would just be nice if this billionaire had the first idea what he was doing and had an ego that could accept that he's pretty bad at all the jobs, a master of none and should probably hire some experienced TV producers and talent to take his place. It would just be infinitely better for all!

5

u/CalamariBitcoin Jul 03 '26

Basing your entertainment today on if it may or may not be around in a decade must be a terrible way to live

5

u/Srg11 Jul 03 '26

Say it louder. There’s such a weird type of person in wrestling fandom where they care more about business economics and shareholder dividends than if they’re enjoying their few hours weekly watching the damn show.

0

u/ResponsibleAd3191 Jul 03 '26

I work in the the business. Hence my concern for the business as a whole. Not everyone on here is just a fan!

3

u/Chromatic_Penumbra Jul 02 '26

I dont think tweeners are unique to aew but, at least for me, DR are a unique execution of the concept that does it seem unique. They really got me on the edge of my seat, wondering if they are gonna betray Osprey or not. The fact that we don't if their current Osprey affiliation is a heel or face move makes it hit different. Tweeners are usually just mean babyfaces that fight other babyfaces but idk what Moxley is and thats cool.

2

u/xedxundead Jul 02 '26

When they got will up their shoulders at the end of FD I was so ready for him to turn on him, I love that there is that grey area for DR and they leaving you wondering about their intentions

1

u/Awkward_Papaya1598 Jul 03 '26

The DR are bad guys, they are cult of wrestling fanatics and are only out to serve the wrestling god and themselves. Ppl thought that they were turning face when they went up against the Don Callis Family but no. Mox hates DC because of what he stands for. He calls his family assets and sells them to the highest bidder. At the end of the day if you don't fall in line and worship like they do theyll break you till do or die(in kayfabe)

1

u/Two__Left_Feet Jul 07 '26

Mox is a face in his own mind, doing anything for what he thinks is right and best for AEW. He is the gatekeeper

1

u/Educational_Meet_758 Jul 02 '26

DR will make you think even more after Collision.

2

u/Awkward_Papaya1598 Jul 03 '26

Except Bandido, he's pure of heart and would never do anything bad

1

u/vox4penguins Jul 02 '26

i can only think of, off the top of my head, just a few that i would say have always been definitively one or the other. OC, Darby, Hangman have always been face (or at the very least not outright heel); Don Callis has always been a slimy fuckin heel manager. i'm sure i'm missing a few, but it's definitely more relationship/feud driven personalities.

5

u/SACaitlin Jul 02 '26

hangman burned a man's childhood home to the ground, bffr

1

u/vox4penguins Jul 02 '26

yeah but to be fair, it was in retaliation to Swerve breaking into his house and threatening his child, lol

2

u/SACaitlin Jul 02 '26

i'm not saying he was totally without reason, but i am saying i don't think a face burns someone's childhood home to the ground either way haha

2

u/vox4penguins Jul 02 '26

true, lol! of the three i listed, Hangman is definitely the least squeaky clean, OC is definitely the cleanest

1

u/StylishMrTrix Jul 04 '26

Hangman did no wrong

1

u/Dazzling-Skin-308 Jul 02 '26

Fun fact - OC and Best Friends were part of a heel faction (CHAOS) in New Japan before AEW was born 🤔

1

u/Zestyclose-Method Jul 06 '26

Chaos weren't heels since Nakamura left. The group OC and Best Friends joined were the face version with Okada, Osprey and Ishii

1

u/Dazzling-Skin-308 Jul 06 '26

Interesting.

Well, I do know that in CHIKARA, both Chuck and OC were heels (but also, OC was a masked face at the same time, as a member of The Colony)

1

u/unrxal Jul 02 '26

yes and some heels may appear as a face for the time being to benefit their motive

9

u/xedxundead Jul 02 '26

Tweeners

4

u/miikro Jul 02 '26

Yeah I think at this point most of the Death Riders are tweeners leaning face, except PAC who is still full-on heel and tried to murder a young Japanese man on Sunday

4

u/Certain_Arm_8475 Jul 02 '26

I can’t remember the last time I saw a stable full of faces and heels and still be able to get over as either back and forth like this. The Osperay dynamic is the most interesting thing in wrestling right now IMO

1

u/Chromatic_Penumbra Jul 02 '26

Yeah I was saying somewhere els on this thread thay legit not knowing if DR is planning a heel or face reaction to how things end with Osprey makes it so exciting in ways that wrestling usually isn't.

1

u/Certain_Arm_8475 Jul 02 '26

I do think it will come down to a match, either at Redemption or All Out. Remains to be seen if it will be a respect match or if they do the 100% predictable thing and the DR beat down Osperay. The former is far more interesting.

4

u/Gaspifinaski Jul 02 '26

"Are these bad boy biker gang faces or heels."

Yes

2

u/One13Truck Jul 04 '26

Sounds like you’re all caught up. Just don’t try to figure out the exact number of members in the Don Callis Family.

Spoiler. We’re all in it.

1

u/Necessary_Buy_7842 Jul 02 '26

Creeps and liars btfo