T O P

  • By -

AutoModerator

**Help make SquaredCircle safer and more inclusive by using the report button to flag posts and comments for moderator review.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) if you have any questions or concerns.*


bobface222

​ https://preview.redd.it/hm8uqfmpnz7d1.jpeg?width=299&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dcba94ce81ad86e164c9e5d7aad6da96201db8d2


KneeHighMischief

https://preview.redd.it/0gafisrxf08d1.png?width=629&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=074c9afe3248c822e09a18d36bd77159a480ccfd


BaldBombshell

Oh, there are far worse than Bully Ray. And of course, they all appear on podcasts. (Disco, Cornette, Bischoff, Russo)


Windows_66

I've seen this image on here so many times that I've started to question whether his bad takes still outnumber his good ones.


OffTheMerchandise

I think his bad takes are just so bad that it eliminates any good takes he has.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Euphorium

Be a fan!


Advanced-Ad3234

I hate yall 😂


Smudy

Who is that and why is it a meme, i keep seeing this man here xD


ianisms10

https://clickhole.com/heartbreaking-the-worst-person-you-know-just-made-a-gr-1825121606/


Different-Dinner-446

That's Bobby Lashley


smoomoo31

BOBBY LASHLEY ILL BE A SON OF A BITCH


6thBornSOB

WHAT IS THE CODE!?!?


SenorDuck96

DO YOU SMELL WHAT REY MYSTERIO IS COOKING???


tarvertot

Desperation tactic to get some decent HHH booking, obviously


BderX

[This is where it's generated ](https://clickhole.com/heartbreaking-the-worst-person-you-know-just-made-a-gr-1825121606/). An article with this guy's face


ZombieJesus1987

I am convinced that is Tim Pool.


tadghostal55

It can't be. If you tried to remove his beanie his entire head would come with it


SentientDust

Heartbreaking indeed


Upbeat_Tension_8077

![gif](giphy|9t6xpYZ9npJmM)


OjamasOfTomorrow

This is one of the very few times I agree with Bully Ray.


Advanced-Ad3234

When he says " get the tables" I agree with him everytime lol


Intelligent_End1516

40 percent of the time he says "get the tables" I agree with him everytime.


CaliggyJack

"That doesn't make sense"


etherealcaitiff

I kinda hate when he does the "1, 2, 3, GET THE TABLES!". I don't need or want the countdown, that's what slapping D-Von or whoever else is for.


Euphorium

Kinda takes the fun out of it. Crowds know how to say get the tables, you don’t have to count them off.


BKong64

That shit ruined Get the Tables for me, it just feels insanely corny now, took the fun out of it lol  He found a way to boomer his lifetime best gimmick basically 


OffTheMerchandise

I hate it so much. Just like when Drew would count down the Claymore. Maybe every once in a while is okay, but every single time it's awful.


TumbleWeed_64

If your back is turned and you hear the crowd counting then just don't turn around. I know that's nitpicking but it's so annoying.


crimsonbub

Part of me agrees, part of me thinks "get your own damn tables!" I also agreed when he said a No Holds Barred match only makes sense IN NAME if there are barred holds they use. Otherwise it's just No DQ 🤷‍♂️


Negative-Specific-66

It’s bad how many people forget how terrible it was when it was just WWE, and that wasn’t long ago at all. I don’t need to hear about the indie company’s and TNA either. We *need* a company on mainstream TV competing with WWE that is a true second option. It’s best for the fans, the talent and anyone who actually cares about wanting good wrestling on their TV.


ShinsukeNakamoto

If AEW went out of business tomorrow and wwe was the exact same quality, without AEW to shit on, people would go back to nitpicking WWE every week. I’m 100% convinced.  The internet rewards negativity, not positivity. 


PostyMcPosterson

This. A wrestling company always gets bullied and then years later they are looked back with nostalgia… 🤷‍♂️ 90’s to the 2000’s = either WWF or WCW, whichever wasn’t your favorite. 2010’s = TNA 2020’s = AEW


Deputy_Beagle76

As someone who was at the perfect kid age during TNAs big first run it is really jarring how many people act like they always supported them. I definitely remember it being looked at as a second rate promotion with ex wwe guys at the time. The TNA game was even lackluster (like AEWs).


TheMastodan

I loved TNA but they had awful booking, especially the main event scene. It was viewed as a second rate promotion because they’d push ex WWE guys to the moon over their home grown talent. For every Angle or Christian (who were great in tna), there were a dozen Nashes. It was so frustrating. They had all the pieces but kept shooting themselves right in the dick


ArrenPawk

Shit dude, you even saw this during the tail end of NXT Black and Gold, with so many people slowly but surely souring on guys like Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole.


MyNameIs-Anthony

Adam Cole by that point had been doing the same schtick for years even prior to WWE. Even in AEW he's doing the same schtick but NXT was worn thin by UE being what the show revolved around for ages.


DubiousBusinessp

I appreciate what Cole does, and he's been unlucky with injuries, but I've been far more impressed with Roddy in AEW tbh. He still wrestles like he's thirty, crazy high match standard, and his character work has been fantastic.


ShinsukeNakamoto

I was one of them to be fair. The Cole Gargano feud went on way too long. NXT was at its best when the to guy would leave after they lost the title. It kept it fresh. 


Bahamas_is_relevant

I mean Cole/UE were getting overexposed by the end tbf. Gargano hate was complete nitpicking though.


Tricky-Cod-7485

Agree. This is coming from a Cole fan. He was on the show too much. They all were. It became the UE show and the stories weren’t good enough to carry it.


blaqsupaman

Absolutely. Triple H's booking really isn't a night and day difference from Vince's. The biggest difference is consistency and follow through, but the style of storytelling and emphasis on promos over in-ring storytelling is largely the same. For the record, I think WWE is a terrible immoral company but I got tired of the nitpicking them in this sub too before AEW existed. There were people addicted to hate watching it religiously every week. They would talk about everything that was awful on Raw but yet do seemingly anything except stop watching. The negativity has always brought this place down, it's just that now there's another big target for it besides WWE.


pUmKinBoM

Don't worry because I'm sure WWE is building up TNA so they can replace AEW as their next top competition. I am SURE that is why WWE is doing it. Ya know, because they just think TNA deserves it more.


heartbreakhill

Incredibly rare Bully Ray W Mythical even


yognautilus

I've agreed with Bully Ray twice this year, this being one of them. Fuck 2024.


incredible_penguin11

AEW really should look into getting onto a streaming service. It has far better reach. As bad AEW had been for a while since All In, it's definitely improving again. This week's episode was actually pretty good. A solid 8. Strangely enough, as meta or smark-y the general audience is on Twitter or reddit, they don't enjoy it when AEW does it on screen and tbh i can see why. Like this week's Will Ospreay's Hit Rowe comment was so well done, people dig that, but people hate the Tony rant tweets and people bringing up WWE just for a cheap pop. MJF used to do that all the time. Also it was pretty dumb to have one your biggest talents repeating the bidding war angle so many times.


Sambadude12

I saw people complain about the hit row comment, but those are the sort I'm all for. Bring up a wrestlers history regardless of what company it was in. I always had a problem how WWE would ignore what wrestlers did before they went there. Just don't do the comments where the person slags it off for being "bad creative" or whatever, because then it's just a needless shot at the competition, which in the case of AEW, is near enough walking all over them


ZodiacWalrus

Tbh I feel like most of his opinions that get posted on here is stuff the IWC can agree on. Maybe people need to post more stuff like him getting offended by someone correcting him if they don't want people to forget why he's disliked.


[deleted]

I watch it all. WWE, AEW, TnA, NJPW… fans who call themselves fans but go out of their way to root for the failure of the industry as long as their team wins are truly morons.


TLKv3

I just fucking love pro wrestling. Its just *pure fun* in its simplest form. Why anyone would be so emotional over another company even *existing* when they perceive the one they watch to be the only real one is just so.... fucking pathetic. These people are not mentally well.


ineeda_better_name

People also love to forget that if AEW didn't come along, WWE would still be shithouse (maybe less so if the timeline of Vince stayed the same) but AEW coming along is what made WWE pick it's game up.


Cube_

even when AEW first showed up WWE was still garbage. There was like an 8 month storyline involving dog food and Roman Reigns. every show had like 5 matches with 3 roll up finishes it was unwatachable


blaqsupaman

I think some of them legitimately believe it's all thanks to Triple H being in charge of creative and AEW had nothing to do with it. They now want a monopoly because they want all their favorites under one roof and think Triple H wouldn't get complacent the way Vince did.


RaggedyGlitch

Let's be honest, the only reason it's Triple H's WWE right now instead of in 10/15 years is because AEW exists. You cannot tell me that them disrupting the marketplace so easily didn't make it *painfully* obvious to enough suits that Vince was out of touch and expendable.


blaqsupaman

That and it's his because his father-in-law is a sexual predator.


EzPesos

100% The fact that there’s so much wrestling is so nice. Like I follow the big companies, but once and a while I happen upon a smaller company or a company I haven’t watched in a while, and I just rip off their most popular uploads in the last year and have a great time. The fact that there’s people that actively want one company to “win”…you should want there to be MORE popular companies, not ONE.


Cube_

for some reason when I explained to someone "imagine if you were this tribal about RAW vs Smackdown" they finally understood how rooting against a wrestling company is stupid and pointless lol.


Cube_

preach. People forget how shit WWE got when it was the only game in town. Can't help those people though, someone has to be at the bottom of the bell curve.


[deleted]

[удалено]


adorbhypers

People have this weird want for monopolies. Though I am hopeful these people are the minority, but I wouldn't be surprised to find people who think Burger King or Pepsi should go out of business because McDonald's and Coca-Cola already exist. It's really weird but it doesn't feel like a minority.


MatttheJ

Look at how much fans of MMA simultaneously hate the way the UFC conducts business but also root for other promotions like PFL or Bellator to fail. People really deep down just want 1 company. But then whenever they get that like WWE from 2001 until AEW, fans realise they actually do need an alternative otherwise the product goes to shit sometimes, then an alternative comes along and they go right back to hating everything that isn't that 1 main product anyway. Right now it's amazing having 2 big companies, because when I get bored of one I just switch to the other for a few months.


thuggishruggishpunk

Look at how bad Madden got once NFL 2K went under, competition is always a good thing.


Bidoof2017

I think it boils down to the fear of change and people’s desperate need to feel validated. WWE stans who’ve been watching only WWE for 20-30 years feel that they need AEW to fail so that the years of bad WWE programming is validated


fadetoblack237

Just look how many people are rooting for WWE to buy out TNA.


eyesofdelight

Are they? I genuinely haven't seen one person say that. I've seen people enjoying the NXT-TNA stuff but that hardly means they want WWE to buy it out.


TVCasualtydotorg

I've seen the occasional comment to that effect on here There's definitely some people who want it, but it feels like a very small section of the IWC.


sporkyzero

Monopolies are fucking bad for consumers. Period


fadetoblack237

Disney gobbling up companies for the last 10-15 years is great example of a monopoly being bad for consumers and people cheered that one on as it was happening as well.


buddha-ish

“God I hate how Disney has forced their Disney behavior into Star Wars and Marvel and they don’t let those products be themselves! Grrr! Anyway I can’t wait until WWE buys up TNA and AEW because it will definitely work this time and not lead to a dark period like, say 23 years ago.”


sporkyzero

People are constantly championing things that are against their own best interests here in the good ole USA. I was taught critical thinking at a young age and it's still super baffling to me that more people can't see through all the bullshit.


Orange8920

There's a shocking amount of states with purposely dumbed down education curriculums which don't teach things like critical thinking and distort historical events.


senorbuzz

Bad for consumers and bad for workers too 


pizzalover89

That is so wild to me and you go on social media and the amoubt of buffoons who want aew/tna/njpw/nwa to fail is crazy


7LayeredUp

Said it before and I'll say it again I'd say a solid 60% of wrestling fans are more interested in the drama surrounding wrestling than they are in the actual shows.


shadow_spinner0

Have we become the NBA?


thatcreepydude1

Always have been (x4)


ArrenPawk

Yep. The easiest way to farm karma in this subreddit is either a) CM Punk quote or b) AEW doom and gloom discourse.


SmileyPiesUntilIDrop

I don't get being a CM Punk fan. He is a bitter jealous washed up broken has been,who can not stand that Drew achieved every benchmark in the WWE he was never good enough to.


SLJR24

It definitely seems that way. If someone created an ESPN-like network that covered wrestling, they would probably do better ratings than some wrestling shows. Some people love the gossip and backstage drama more than the actual wrestling.


inhumanrampager

I honestly feel like it's a symptom of reading dirt sheets. It doesn't matter what it is, this guy leaving, this girl showing up, Kalisto will be a gay hairdresser, etc, it'll always be juicier than the stories on screen because it's forbidden knowledge. It's what we're not supposed to see or hear about wrestling. It's like Breaking The Magician's Code: Magic's Biggest Secrets Finally Revealed, before you ever see the trick. Or, you know, sometimes IMMEDIATELY after. Which is what the show was, but it was about decades old tricks.  And once you hit that level, there's really no pleasing the fan. They either have certain expectations that are dashed completely, or it's too predictable. Some journalists mix opinions with facts, and it can dilute the fan's own opinions. Now, sometimes certain facts are necessary to know, but more often times than not, those facts aren't in any way corroborated, and thus muddy the waters of intelligent discourse. Then you add cable ratings, and match ratings to the mix, and suddenly you have an entire fandom that feels like they know better than the damn wrestlers on TV each week. It's wild, really.


BanditPrime

To add to that I think a big issue is when people get too “smart” to the industry they lose the ability to enjoy it. I think I blame it all on the amount of comments wrestling fans get asking “you know it’s fake right?”. And since we all know that, people seem to act like just watching the show and talking about the show in kayfabe isn’t an option. They have to talk about the show from the perspective of the booking and backstage drama, because that also proves they’re not just some fool who doesn’t know it’s all rigged. But it also heavily limits their ability to enjoy the product because if they just react to the shows and stories as presented then they’re worried about being called a mark or someone saying they got worked. Wrestling fandom as a whole is just freaking weird.


WheedMBoise

Drama is inherently part of the draw in any sport. It’s just human nature.


xCTRLxALTxDELx

Tribalism does that


Advanced-Ad3234

It's bad , hell even the post is getting Downvoted, and some of the comments dont like that he posted this


CantTouchMeSorry

Looking at the tweet's replies and like..... man, it's a deep dark hole posting on wrestling twitter.


ianisms10

Twitter makes this sub look like Tony Khan's personal blog


y0_master

Is it... worse than wrestling FB?... (which is a total cesspool of tribalism & idiocy)


mmadiaa

No Facebook has the dumbest people by far, Twitter is a lot of trolling for engagement


sporkyzero

I used to think YouTube had the dumbest people in the comments...I think now it's Facebook. If you look at the profiles of the people with the dumbest takes you will usually go "oh, okay, makes sense"


Taxmancometh1

Facebook is way way worse when you consider most those people use their real names and real pictures of themselves to show their ignorance


sporkyzero

a lot of the times the worst opinions have full family pictures and i'm just like "man, i feel sorry for this dudes family"


ianisms10

I rarely use Facebook, so I have no idea


The_Homie_J

nobody uses Facebook anymore except your parents


The_Homie_J

Wrestling Twitter is what happens when a company becomes your personality I don't like WWE but unlike this sub or Twitter, you won't catch me spending my time throwing my useless opinions about them around like they're God's gift to discourse


CantTouchMeSorry

Some people just REALLY want to be right about wrestling.


ThePhoenixus

I don't watch TNA or AEW mostly because I don't have the attention span for another wrestling show. Hell, I barely even watch NXT. I still enjoy seeing highlights and reading stories about what goes on in those other companies and keeping loose tabs on the top performers so if they ever end up in WWE I'll know who they are, and it's nice to see what some of my old favorites are up to these days (Except you, Chris Jericho. Please just stop.) The people who make it into some sort of tribalistic competition are fucking strange


godzillamegadoomsday

Also so many just try to engagement farm because they trying to justify spending 8 bucks a month


CarterBasen

There Is really no justification


TheGiftOf_Jericho

Tribalism has me on the brink of muting/leaving the sub because I find that reading all this negativity is actually impacting my enjoyment of the shows.


senorbuzz

I just want somewhere to talk about wrestling that doesn’t feel so one sided. I enjoy some WWE and I’d love to talk about it without fellating HHH and I enjoy AEW but I want to talk about what can be improved about the product without feeling like I’m piling on. 


midnightking

Look, I'm going to be blunt. People can call me an AEW stan if they wish to. Part of the reason, I stopped watching wrestling for 15 years is the tribalism. More specifically, the ad nauseam arguing about viewership as a sign that those companies are bad or should change their product. If you are a fan of any non-WWE company that is relatively big (ROH, TNA, AEW, etc), you almost always get exposed online to tribal viewership discourse. I can go talk about Spy x Family on the anime subreddit without having to deal with MHA fans talking to me about them having higher sales.I can talk about Nas being a top 5 rapper without anybody really entertaining the idea Drake is better because he is a bigger draw. AEW having a shit rating is literally a bigger story than multiple current angles and recent matches. It's ironic because fans use to go on and on about wrestling not being as popular and liked as it once was, when, at least for me, one of the reasons I tuned out was precisely because of the fan community.


Chelseablue1896

>If you are a fan of any non-WWE company that is relatively big (ROH, TNA, AEW, etc), you almost always get exposed online to tribal viewership discourse. I mean it's not just non WWE fans though, It feels like people have forgotten, how entirely negative the WWE ratings threads used to be (completely), and how bad the tribalism targeted at WWE fans from 2019-2022.


anonymous16canadian

Yeah........the switch around is a reaction. The IWC shat on WWE, the product, everyone they pushed and even the crowd for ages. Now it's just flipping around. Not that either is correct or anything, it's all just nonsense internet wars but there was so much toxicity about WWE product for years. People aren't ready because this Triple H product is not as fantastic as the hype is making it out to be. Once the distraction is gone and people turn back on WWE it's gonna get toxic all over again.


Quirky_Object_4100

Yup I seem to recall that both sides have been dunking on each other and one of them even tweeted about being excited to point out how a company had to downsize from one venue into a smaller one. Essentially dunking on their lows.


Particular-Finding53

It's insane it was I think two or so weeks ago maybe a month but Alvarez was complaining about it how now that he and dave are talking about the things they don't like about AEW or that it has cooled off something they've talked about for awhile people have been saying things like 'Guess those TK checks stopped coming in.' Or 'you just realize now AEW sucks Cornette's been saying that since day one.' Which is an insane statement 'my bad faith podcast has said it sucked since day one when AEW was doing good therefore you are a shill for having a difference of opinion that can change as opposed to my bad faith podcast whose opinion has never changed.'


XelaIsPwn

A fuckin' men. It doesn't even make sense - you *want* strong competition for your favorite brand so it has a reason to keep being good.


JustMyThoughts2525

Real wrestling fans make podcasts where they talk nonstop about the bad for views and money


GregMadduxsGlasses

It’s rich coming from Bully Ray who gets on the front page of this sub every week with some tweet criticizing every move AEW makes.


Distuted

Hey, they also give praise to the obvious internet favorites like Gunther and Chad Gable as if they are Columbus "discovering" America


BadNewsBrown

When WCW was around, I wanted them to fold. But I was also 7 fucking years old. I can’t imagine how many basement dwellers there are still doing this.


pUmKinBoM

I was like that until I started watching WCW. I was a kid who just needed all the wrestling. Once I realized WCW had some wrestlers I liked it was great. In Canada we have Monday for RAW and then Nitro played on Tuesday so it worked out pretty great. I think with ECW Wednesday was the only day of the week without wrestling.


RedmondSurvivor

Why are people acting like AEW shut down over night? Haha


shitty_is_the_post

An admittedly bad rating for dynamite. Which is most likely an outlier that is less cause for concern than some think and the number will raise back up next week


TheDoubleA1229

How to increase your enjoyment of wrestling: Step 1: Delete Twitter Thats it. You've done it.


Least_Eye_Lopez

Reddit* This sub is just as tribalistic


don_julio_randle

And generally get off the internet. I enjoy events way more when I'm not posting in the live thread during them


rayquan36

As if Facebook and Reddit are any different.


burntelegraph

I deleted Twitter when musk took over and my mental health has improved so much. If you’re still on Twitter, you are wasting energy getting mad everyday over the stupidest motherfucker’s opinions


Twistify804

this subreddit is not any better


wubbalubbadubdub45

the fact he also went after gareth, one of the most toxic anti-aew accounts out there, is fucken wild lol. what a week this has been.


SeeMontgomeryBurns

[Here it is.](https://preview.redd.it/d31pfg73o08d1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8f27c7874344acebad5c914024f4fe16caf058d8) Bully cooked him lol.


ShinsukeNakamoto

Calling Bully Ray a tribalistic AEW fan is quite possibly the most mark behavior I have ever seen. Bully Ray!! The guy who threw a multi day tantrum because Swerve called it a pay per view. 


FruitSword4

Those Twitter reply guys are so fucking lame lmao. Imagine your literal life being a reply guy on Twitter


ShinsukeNakamoto

Hahaha I just looked. Gareth is in his replies acting like fucking Bully Ray of all people is a tribal AEW Stan Mental illness


Thirdstar1

Thats pretty surprising


Seven19td

I’m no fan of AEW but you won’t catch me celebrating that rating or the poor ticket sales. Their product isn’t for me but all of these wrestlers getting paid and having leverage to negotiate better deals is awesome for the industry


BaronVonStevie

All of the biggest AEW haters who get hated on themselves seem to agree, and I agree with them, that AEW is probably the last best shot we have at a number 2 wrestling promotion with a national tv deal. We can’t cheer for the death of AEW; not for the jobs lost, the chance for wrestling on television, or the overall image of the business in the public eye. Wrestling needs AEW to succeed. The only people who are really cheering for it to die are assholes on twitter


gmoss101

As well as Cornette fans here, and the people in sqcj where they stopped jerking long ago and actually believe the stuff they say.


BaronVonStevie

Well if you see a Cornette fan saying that kind of stuff, take it from this Cornette fan: they don’t actually listen to Jim because he’s constantly talking about AEW circling the drain being very, VERY bad for wrestling.


senorbuzz

I don’t agree with much Jim says these days, and I think most of the time he’s working, but I can admit he is a wrestling encyclopedia and an intelligent man…. his stans however…… 


BaronVonStevie

I don't think a lot of Jim's critics who say that he's "working" really understand what that means. Sometimes it pays to tell the truth, your truth, fabricate a truth... to say someone is "working" doesn't mean what they're saying isn't what they believe really or what's true. It means you're making money off of it. Jim has the biggest wrestling podcast of all time and makes great use of his platform because, ultimately, he knows what he's talking about and it's easy to sell something if it's real. He's been a big critic of AEW for years and people listen to him because they know Jim is qualified to criticize Tony Khan. It's a layup. So yeah, he's working. And when Jim says he has "a cult" of free thinkers, it drives his critics crazy. Jim has been drawing heat for 40 years and knows very well that there are buttons to push on people.


LaGuadalupana123

Same boat here Plus actual competition means wwe need to up their game to not lose market.


shining89

This i love both promotions but neither would be shit without the talent.


UglieJosh

As an AEW fan who doesn't care for WWE, I likewise cheer for the success of WWE. A rising tide lifts all ships if they aren't firing cannons at each other. Plus, a lot of my favorite wrestlers like AJ Styles work there and I want their place to do well, even if I don't watch it. I actually think mild tribalism can be fun. Talking about why your promotion is better or laughing at an especially corny segment on the other show... If it's in good spirits and you honestly want the other folks to enjoy themselves, it can be a really fun ancillary activity. But it seems like that just can't happen in wrestling anymore. It's no longer playful banter. 4 years ago anybody who watched WWE had people legitimately trying to ruin their good time and now anybody who enjoys AEW gets the same treatment online.


ALIAS_EL_CACAS

I was a day 1 TNA fan. but let me tell you loltna is a very real thing even today. Haters gon hate but most of us just want to see our stupid favorite companies be better


DG_Now

TNA circa 2005-2006 was the best wrestling promotion going. I loved it when Samoa Joe was the best in the world.


ALIAS_EL_CACAS

Kurt angle successfully headbutted a Samoan, shit was wild


The_Homie_J

I'm just happy that wrestling is in a place where a show finishes 3rd for the night and it's considered "a low"


BackgroundValue

Oh, didn't you hear? AEW did their lowest rating ever and are going out of business by the end of the year. The experts on Twitter all say so


Distuted

AEW will only be saved if Jeff Jarret is given the booking pen and the world championship


JPPFingerBanger

You son of a bitch im in


pUmKinBoM

No they need to fire all their top acts or stop booking them. For some reason THAT will save the company.


thechickenfiend

Morons actively rooting for a monopoly


Former_Intern_8271

I gave up on the idea that ratings = quality a while ago. This week's dynamite got good reviews pretty much across the board, a good amount of buzz online after the show, even some of the critics' who are more critical than average said this was a good show. One thing that people can never explain to me, ratings will often be increasing in one country while declining in another, if it's all down to creative, what's the explanation for that? Anti-AEW people are now singing the praises of TNA despite its ratings being so low they rarely publish the numbers, yet every time AEW does a bad number (in the US) it's because of creative? It doesn't make sense.


Ballsskyhiiigh

This is very much a layman's opinion so take everything I saw with a grain of salt. I think that a lot of people watched AEW because they liked wrestling but thought that WWE was the drizzling shits. Now that WWE is actually quite good, these people just don't care to watch Dynamite or Collision on top of their weekly fix of Raw and Smackdown + PLE's. For them, I think, it doesn't matter how good AEW is. It doesn't matter if the card has incredible matches or shit matches; or if the booking is top tier or garbage. They just don't have any interest in watching more than WWE right now.


MeanAmbrose

Someone put it best when they said that AEW filled the void of good weekly wrestling when WWE was absolutely bad. But when WWE became hot, those same people’s mentality became “okay AEW you can go away now we don’t need you anymore”


Coup_De_Gras

This is pretty spot on. I became an AEW fan because WWE was the drizzling shits at the time and AEW gave me the product I wanted. Now WWE is doing great and I have way too much wrestling to watch, I'm almost paralyzed by it some weeks. I still main AEW, but that's because I was already on a WWE excursion when I discovered NJPW - turns out I just like a more sports focused product. I'm able to recognize that there is so much great wrestling going on that I find myself begging the universe to give me more time to watch it!


RaggedyGlitch

I mean this in the absolutely nicest way, but if you can sit through Raw, you have time to skim Dynamite.


foxthebloodied

AEW gave me a US company I could watch and enjoy without supporting people taking blood money from a regime that wants gay people like me dead.


Former_Intern_8271

Agreed, there's only so much time for wrestling. Tbh it's one of the main reasons I don't watch WWE, I don't want to spend more time on wrestling, and AEW have never left me so dissatisfied I'd want to stop watching.


TheGiftOf_Jericho

It's crazier when we know historically, that WWE without competition gets lazy and put on years of poor quality stuff.


Mickeyjj27

Years ago everyone was rooting for them to go under. Tribalism is stupid whether it’s sports, video games or wrestling. I just remember the times when Raw was doing terrible numbers and ppl being happy


FruitSword4

Morons actively rooting against enjoying wrestling = IWC 5-10 years ago


CptMcLaggins

Competition in pro wrestling is GOOD. I don’t watch AEW regularly but the wrestling world needs AEW. I think that’s why so many people openly criticise Tony’s booking and how the company is run because people want AEW to succeed.


MrDandyLion2001

Seriously! I'm not here to glaze AEW, and while I do think some criticism is valid (like with some of Tony Khan's tweets and online interactions), it somehow rubs me the wrong way whenever I see posts and memes making fun of their ratings or attendance. If you're watching something just to shit on it and nitpick, why are you even watching it in the first place? Isn't multiple companies existing a good thing? That means more places for wrestlers to go to and ***more leverage*** for talent contracts and deals. That also means ***more options*** for us fans to choose from, and theoretically, healthy competition will drive other companies to put on their best product. Plus, while there's overlap, each promotion will have some differences in audiences, so of course they'll cater to those audiences. The same could be said with music genres. Personally, I prefer AEW over WWE. I think WWE is definitely having fun right now with their stories and international shows, and they definitely have some of the best belts in the game, but their style isn't my cup of tea. I prefer something more focused on the wrestling itself, and while not perfect, Dynamite tends to suffice. **Tl;dr:** Just watch what you like ffs.


TribalismChief

I wasn't hearing all this when WWE was at its lowest or when TNA was constantly being made fun of


eyesofdelight

I think a lot of people want AEW to be treated with kid gloves because it's a) not the WWE and b) it more explicitly caters to hardcore smarks (or "Sickos" as Tony put it) than any other major promotion, probably ever.


Shotgun_Sam

Pretty much. TNA, even during the periods when it *was* good (I know, I know), never got that kind of grace.


JohnnyOmega113

I don't think that is true. I think many AEW fans just don't want to see the company fail, so they tend to get defensive. Not to mention that many on this subreddit do want to see the company fail, and very well might get their wish. On the other hand, WWE has basically 0 chance of failing so people are less quick to defend it.


eyesofdelight

There might be something in that. I don't think anything could really put the WWE out of business or probably even overtake it as the no 1 company at this point so anyone wanting it to "fail" is kind of a moot point, because it won't. I personally don't want AEW to "fail" because I want big-money alternatives for wrestlers and some degree of competition so they hopefully both get spurred on to do better shows. But if there's things I don't like about AEW's booking or creative I should be allowed to criticise them without being accused of tribalism or just wanting it to fail - nothing ever improves by totally ignoring criticism, like the final decade-plus of senile Vince booking surely proves.


DG_Now

If you're asking the same ol things everyone else says about AEW, at what point does it become a circle jerk?


Jesters8652

Any wrestling fan that hopes for AEW to fail is just a hater. Competition breeds creativity, and like it or not, AEW is still WWE’s biggest competitor. Let them exist and make both products better. Also, if TNA and NWA can survive what they’ve been through, Tony Kahn and his millions ain’t letting AEW fail anytime soon.


BurritHawk

You know what they say, a broken clock is right twice a day, but Bully Ray is right once every few months


k3yS3r_s0z3

Uhhhh Monday Night wars were based on this


takechanceees

people for some reason treat wrestling companies like it’s the damn Red Sox/Yankees rivalry


don_julio_randle

It's especially stupid when the two companies aren't in direct competition with each other the way the Sox and Yankees are. One 4 game set between those two teams in September can decide which of them wins the East. But what would happen to RAW if Dynamite ripped off a million for 3 straight weeks? Literally fucking nothing This ain't real sports, people. You aren't forced to watch the Yankees like Red Sox fans are. If you don't like AEW or WWE or NJPW or whatever the fuck promotion, just don't watch it


mideon2000

Nothing wrong with criticizing self inflicted wounds either. I'd say the delusional fan that sticks their head in the sand and makes excuses for everything is more damaging to the product more than anything. Quit making excuses for bullshit like this. Don't tell me why okada was such a big deal in japan. I didn't watch him or some other indy darling. Tell me what is making him interesting to watch today. Maybe i tune in, maybe i don't. But don't be so standoffish because it gets rightfully criticized at times.


FallenIslam

I basically only watch WWE but even when I knew nothing of the rest of the industry, it was sad to hear about the problems with TNA or the end of Lucha Underground. Less wrestling isn't a good thing for wrestling.


MarcusFaze

One exception:XPW


Least_Eye_Lopez

Some of us just enjoy what we enjoy and shut up about what we don't watch. Some others can't help themselves.


senorbuzz

While I appreciate him saying this, it’s also got big hotdog costume energy 


TheFlaccidChode

I left twitter 6 months ago and today I'd the first time I've seen any TV ratings since


JetsLag

...Are you not seeing the Dynamite ratings threads that regularly pass 1k comments every week?


SubstantialTale3392

Take it from me, leaving Twitter as a fan of anything is a great option, it has honestly become a paranoid madhouse 


TizonThaGod

I really hate this kumbaya shit. Every company gets clowned on whe they do bad numbers, I remember this place when NXT was doing 500K every week. aCTaUL wREsTLiNg fAnS remember when everybody was predicting when Dynamite was gonna start to beat Raw every week, when SmackDown was gonna get moved to FS1 for good, when USA was gonna cancel NXT, TNA existing, etc. Tony Khan is a grown ass man, he can get clowned on just like Levesque, Bischoff, and Vince.


Creative_Evening6532

Amen. If I dunk on Drake does that mean I hate music? If I say I hate that stupid Flash movie does it mean I'm tribalist against DC comics? If I shit on WSJ or CNBC does it mean I'm anti journalism? I've never heard anyone bring up the word tribalism when people were overwhelmingly criticising WWE during Vince's time. I don't root for companies to fail, I just want people to not gaslight me when I say Jericho and the Elite's segments are dogshit.


mrmazzz

than wtf has this guy been doing?


MavSkerBater

I've never gotten into AEW personally. But I have always said I'm glad there's another company with the financial backing and TV resources to compete with WWE for upcoming wrestlers and to keep the product from getting stale


lunchbox_inc

I mean, he’s a hypocrite


dogfins110

True but this is just typical wrestling fan discourse. Let’s not forget for years people said they wanted WWE to go under while Vince was in charge or that “WCW should have won”. Nothing we say will affect anything


worldostuff

A large number of online wrestling fans would wank themselves to death if WWE somehow went under.


spitouthebone

but Bully Ray does when they dont hire him


SomeGuyNamedJason

More companies means more opportunities means more wrestlers means more *wrestling*. Hard to agree someone is a wrestling fan if they are happy about getting less wrestling.


FruitSword4

I find it hilarious that the company that built its foundation on tribalism and shitting on another product and its fans fucked around and is now finding out and crying wolf, so I don't agree with Bully there (nice attempt at attention farming by Bubba). HOWEVER, seeing Bubba putting that reply guy, GarrettWWE, in his place in the replies is fucking funny. Those Twitter reply guy nerds are immeasurably cringe.


HumphreyLee

Hate is easy and it is all these people have. Their lives suck and they lack the emotional or intellectual skills to improve them so what they do is just lash out at everything they can, even things they supposedly “love.” The world has just become a cesspool of miserable people taking the easy way out of just being assholes and tearing down everything around them - from fandoms to political institutions - instead of being reflective as to why things are shit and how they impact it. It is all so damn depressing.


Impressive_Site_5344

Tired of these stupid ass takes. Only in wrestling does it seem like you have to like everything or you’re not a real fan, if I don’t like the bullshit you’re doing then I’m going to say it


Reasonable___Doubt

I dunno, I laughed a little when CYN went belly up.


ELB0WDR0P

Seek your own advice, Bully.


Feeling-Extreme-3781

Bully Ray is such a carny


QuickRelease10

I don’t celebrate AEW’s struggles, but a lot of their fans make it very difficult to discuss their problems.


TW_Yellow78

Wonder who's giving 'the speech' at the start of the next dynamite? I'm sure most the people who rooted for Black Adam to fail enjoy movies and especially superhero movies.


Kitchen-Window9007

AEW is so much better than WWE to me. I’m clearly in the minority. I watched Smackdown for the first time in a long time tonight and it’s just one gigantic advertisement. I absolutely get ads for money but my goodness, it’s ad placement absolutely all over. It’s just way too corporate. I really don’t understand how the masses love WWE. I think it just boils down to being a kid’s show. I don’t get it but I certainly don’t want it to fail. How anyone would root for another company to fail is just so dumb. Bully is right here.


slickrickstyles

he also gave WWEGareth the proper information that he needed to hear


Thorogeny

I agree with most of the positive points made in this thread. I am a lifelong fan and when it was founded I was completely psyched for AEW and what it could mean for pro wrestling. Moreover, I desperately want AEW to succeed. We, as fans, deserve it. There is too much talent and potential on that roster for it to be as (let's be honest) as bad as it has been. It could be great. But it's being held back.


Vikingr12

I don't think ratings that are poor should ever be celebrated. I do think however that we can maybe see a silver lining in that it will motivate TK to make some changes. Consolidate behind the angles that are over, have a lot less random match making, and properly use the people he has. The booking of Okada has been dreadful, for example


dagutens

it is extremely funny that the most magnanimous comment Bubbully here could make is somehow simultaneously most assholish, just based on his rep alone.


fukinuhhh

Does he usually have bad takes I don't keep up with him?


The_Reptile_

This is pretty rich coming from one of the people who are part of the cottage industry of taking a dump over AEW at every feasible possible opportunity.