The New Standard for All Elite Wrestling

It’s time to talk about The New Standard for All Elite Wrestling.

I originally referenced this in March when discussing what MJF should do next. Here’s what I said if you don’t feel like clicking:

It has been a rally cry lately of AEW for wrestlers to say they want to restore the feeling. Daniel Garcia started it, and everyone from Darby Allin to even MJF before World’s End repeated. Restoring the feeling was restoring 2021 when it felt like AEW was on fire.

I don’t actually want AEW to restore the feeling and the depth of the roster is why. AEW has so many uppercard pro wrestlers who can put on exciting matches that it’s impossible to give everyone something to do every week. Because of this, I don’t want to restore the feeling of 2021. I want 2024 to set The New Standard.

The New Standard is that you have to be wrestling at a certain level or be left behind. No more begging for time because you’ve been around for a long time. No more “What I was promised” talk. I don’t care if you have been around since 2019. I don’t care if you’re signed until 2027 for six or seven figures. Sink or swim. Hoop or get off the court. That’s The New Standard.

I brought it up again when discussing Kazuchika Okada and how people continue to misunderstand his current character. Okada helps establish the New Standard in All Elite Wrestling.

There’s more to The New Standard than just the wrestling quality. It’s also about finally having a strong women’s division and upward mobility mattering.

Now that’s talk about the two on the cover: Toni Storm and Swerve Strickland.

Toni Storm: Setting The New Standard For the Women’s Division

When Toni Storm first came to AEW, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that she would be one of the top stars of the promotion in short time. Her current character has made everyone forget this is a 28-year-old pro wrestler, and she was 26 when she came to the promotion. It only took six months for her to win the AEW Women’s World Championship, but the comfort level wasn’t there yet.

Toni had turned heel to join The Outcasts with Saraya and Ruby Soho, a faction set up as the outsiders of AEW against the women who were there from the beginning. She would win the championship a second time, only to lose it to Hikaru Shida at the 200th episode of AEW Dynamite. Essentially failing at the mission of The Outcasts. This is where Toni would begin to unravel.

Soon becoming Timeless Toni Storm, Toni cared less about her in-ring work and more about her character work. This might sound antithetical to “The New Standard” but this is why we don’t stop reading before things are complete. Toni spent a lot of time tweaking and testing the character, figuring out exactly the tone and presentation she wanted to run with as a Golden Age of Hollywood starlet.

While her in-ring wrestling took a hit due to this, she did become more popular than ever as the Timeless one. She was doing the best character work by far in All Elite Wrestling, and arguably in all of pro wrestling. Once she had figured the character out, she was able to go back to figuring out how to work that in the ring. Starting with AZM on AEW Collision this past April, Toni’s wrestling went back to the promise we saw with her in years past.

Now both armed with the best character work in the company and one of the best wrestlers in the division, it makes more sense to her leading the AEW Women’s Division and being champion. The women’s division has taken a lot of knocks since it kicked into gear in 2020, with complaints on it being treated like a gimmick division (one match per show) and barely getting more than one feud going.

Today the women’s division boasts multiple feuds, two strong champions, and the best storyline in the company. If it was up to me, Mariah May’s betrayal of Toni Storm and challenge for the AEW Women’s World Championship would headline All In 2024 in Wembley Stadium. It’s the strongest story.

Regardless, Toni Storm has helped elevate the women’s division to The New Standard. You can’t just be a free agent anymore to be in the women’s division and get title shots. It’s why Anna Jay is off to Stardom in Japan on excursion. It’s why Diamanté and Leyla Hirsch killed themselves on a Ring of Honor pay per view. This division is no longer a gimmick. It’s telling better stories than the men and it’s outperforming them in the ring at times too. It’s finally a pillar of the promotion.

That’s The New Standard.

Swerve Strickland: The New Standard Champion

I love Killshot.

I’ll put what I said when predicting Keith Lee (remember him?) would beat Swerve Strickland as a way to do the favours before moving up the card at AEW World’s End:

Swerve Strickland is that guy.

He’s going to be the AEW Men’s World Champion in 2024. I think we can all feel it. All of the extra work he has been doing with AEW promotional work is a sign to me that the company wants to go all the way with him. Jon Moxley saying he was seeing if he was made for it was another tell. It’s better to do this now than later. Strap the rocket and see how close to the stars he gets.

I’m glad I was right, and being right here isn’t just a Barry Horowitz pat on the back. It’s about trusting AEW in putting their confidence in Swerve Strickland to be the man.

He did absolutely everything. He came into the company as a singles guys in a tag team with Keith Lee. They won the AEW World Tag Team Championship and had an absolutely fantastic match against The Acclaimed at All Out before dropping the titles in a rematch to Acclaimed two weeks later.

Swerve would turn heel on Keith Lee, and at first it was like AEW President Tony Khan was building Swerve Strickland his own little faction of guys not ready for primetime television. Trench and Park Boudreaux were strange picks to put with Swerve and both no longer exist in the company. To fix this, Tony had Mogul Affiliates align with The Embassy to form Mogul Embassy. This put Prince Nana with Swerve, who has had a career rejuvenation with Swerve. Shrimp cocktail for all!

He was on his way to becoming AEW International Champion but Swerve had his sights set higher. Even if everything was pushing him to be a midcard heel, from the midcard faction to the dancing manager, he knew he could be more and he wanted more. He worked on his promos and physique to be in every way more menacing.

Swerve skipping the International Championship meant more losses for him in bigger matches, but he just kept building more and more momentum with each loss. No complaints. No crying. Just forward momentum. Swerve was building the blueprint for every talent to follow in how to move up in All Elite Wrestling.

Then Swerve found his soulmate in Hangman Page.

Hangman Page was perfect for Swerve Strickland, and not just because he can’t beat Swerve. He became his kindred spirit, the superstar that Swerve could use as his way to move up. Swerve’s connection with the audience as a heel was so strong the crowd cheered Swerve over Hangman Page, the protagonist of AEW. It was startling how much he was getting over, but that’s what happens when you’re consistent in AEW.

The Texas Death match at Full Gear is an absolute classic, and helped not only propel Swerve to the main event in 2024, but also helped get Hangman back there as well. Swerve would also have a great showing in the Continental Classic, despite not winning. By April he would be facing Samoa Joe for the AEW Men’s World Championship and beating him. It felt inevitable in April of 2024. Certainly not in April 2023 working a four way in AAA.

As Champion, there was a worry that he was going to be run over by all of the new stars in AEW like Will Ospreay and Kazuchika Okada. MJF was returning as well, so it was hard to see exactly how Swerve would stay the star of the company. It’s not just a testament to the star power of Strickland, but also AEW actually believing in him, that Swerve has stayed champion and an over one at that.

Swerve is treated like a star and he’s treated like the top guy to beat every week. He’s showing up to almost all public events AEW does, with the AEW Men’s World Championship front and centre. I honestly don’t think the company has had a better ambassador to carry the flag since Chris Jericho.

It’s complicated, because Swerve has had to play the aggressor twice despite being a babyface star champion. The first was against Will Ospreay, and now against Bryan Danielson. But for me this is good, because we know everything Swerve did to get up the ladder. It’s only logical that when he feels threatened, he reverts back to the man who would do anything it takes to keep the championship. He even said it to Ospreay in the build up.

https://twitter.com/KXNGAO/status/1824123943407562885

I do feel like we will see a new champion crowned in the main event of Wembley Stadium, but I don’t worry about Swerve tumbling down the card. He’s done too much to prove his worth and value to the company. He has the Hangman Page feud in his back pocket.

You know what he also has in his back pocket? Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland one day joining forces. I’ve already given them the name of The Bloody Lovers and envisioned them feuding with a healthy Golden Lovers. I’m a dreamer I know.

But this isn’t about fantasy booking the future of Swerve Strickland. This is about acknowledging that he’s presented AEW fans and wrestlers alike with a forward progression. He went from new guy debuting with WWE on his resume (and more importantly Lucha Underground) to tag champion to midcard heel to uppercard tweener to babyface world champion willing to get nasty when he needs to. Jericho, Joe, Omega, Punk, and Moxley were already established superstars. Page and MJF were destined to the championship. Swerve Strickland is the first to go from the midcard to the top. That’s The New Standard.

How AEW Maintains The New Standard

So what was The New Standard? How did I establish it? Three points:

1. Okay in the ring is no longer good enough to move up. You have to be the best of your division.

2. The Women’s Division is no longer like the WCW Cruiserweight division getting one moment a show.

3. Forward movement up the card all the way to the top if you do it right.

In 2024, the average match in All Elite Wrestling is better than any company I have ever watched. It’s better than any year prior in AEW, and it’s better than any other company with weekly television. It’s such a high standard I think too many people take it for granted. “Oh yeah, the wrestling will be great” is said constantly. Oh yeah, the wrestling will be great? Are you kidding me? I’ve spent countless hours watching bad matches in my viewing of pro wrestling. Having guaranteed good to great wrestling is a miracle.

The number one thing you should want for your wrestling company is good pro wrestling. Having that means it’s impossible to put on a bad show. Promos, storylines, logic, those can all be broken. But if the wrestling is good? You watched a good wrestling show. Period. It’s time to stop taking this for granted.

But I don’t disagree that stories could be better. The Women’s Division is proof of that. It’s often the strongest part of the show. Whether it’s the Toni Storm story or Mercedes Moné as heel TBS Champion, or the other stories going on in the company (Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale having a fantastic feud, Saraya and Harley Cameron terrorizing the other women, Hikaru Shida’s growing frustration with not becoming champion again) it’s clear that the women care to tell a great story.

It’s time for the other divisions to have that same care. There was once upon a time I complained about the tag team division getting too much attention. Now they get next to zero attention. The Young Bucks defending the titles on Wednesday was the first time they have defended the titles since winning them in April. Same time Swerve became Men’s World Champion.

The Trios Championship has been a mess. The TNT Championship and Continental Championships are rarely defended. Did you know Chris Jericho as “For The World” Champion has had the same amount of title defences as the TNT and Continental Championships combined? At least the International/American Championship has felt important due to Will Ospreay and MJF.

If the company can get those divisions back in gear, get them even just feeling as good as the women’s divisions do? AEW will be an incredible product.

Finally, forward momentum. When Daniel Garcia returns (if he returns) he needs to become a champion. Darby Allin needs to become an established main eventer after the Sting retirement match. Konosuke Takeshita can’t be beating Kenny Omega and having a fantastic NJPW G1-Climax only to return to the midcard. We need to see that forward progression. I know it’s hard when you also have to cater to the likes of Jon Moxley, Chris Jericho, Christian Cage, and other veteran top stars. But you have to do it. Swerve Strickland can’t be the only male wrestler moved up the card by AEW in the next year. The women, with Mariah May turning heel and Anna Jay hopefully returning better from Stardom, continues to be a well oiled machine for the company.

This is The New Standard, and it’s much better than just restoring the feeling of 2021. Instead of living in the past? It’s fighting for the future.

Photos by All Elite Wrestling

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