Weekly TV ratings might suggest an even battle between the two warring factions of NXT and AEW, but as a mere fan looking for exciting and investing professional wrestling content, there’s a clear winner in the early stages of the Wednesday Night Wars. Having given my time to both weekly episodes of NXT TV and AEW Dynamite, I’ve found myself coming to the conclusion of NXT being far ahead in the race to provide the very best for the modern wrestling aficionado.
There’s an element of excitement in Full Sail that seems to be absent from wherever Dynamite happens to be broadcast from each week. The guys and girls in the ring are going full-throttle, whereas the AEW roster are still finding their feet on the card. Now, you might think it’s unfair to judge the two brands so closely, considering Dynamite has only existed for three months and NXT has had years of evolution behind it. But regardless, AEW need to start bringing out the big guns if they want to keep their already vocal fanbase loyal to them.
AEW have started to show some wounds in the early rounds of the head-to-head skirmish. Some comparisons are already being made to the latter stages of WCW, which if you know your wrestling history, you know is not the era you want to be mirroring. AEW might already have an incredibly rich and diverse talent base, but quite frankly, they’re not being used to their full potential. Outside of the five or six ‘Elite’ main eventers, there’s very little reason to care about what’s happening in each scene. You don’t know what to expect, and that can sometimes come as a detriment to the wrestling fan with little time to spend watching weekly TV.
You can guarantee a good match here and there, but not nearly close to the quantity and quality we’re seeing from NXT. We’re currently in the midst of the 2020 Dusty Cup Tag Classic, which is currently sporting one of the most tantalising line-ups in its short history. With teams from both NXT and NXT UK vying for the opportunity to take home the trophy and subsequent bragging rights, we have been seeing some incredible tag matches. Even if you haven’t had the chance to sit down and watch each match, when you’re told that The Undisputed Era, Imperium, The Time Splitters and the makeshift team of Pete Dunne and Matt Riddle are competing against one another, you just know you’re in for a treat.
On almost a weekly basis, you know that you’re going to see an instant classic. Whether it be a number one contenders fatal 4 way, a fantasy clash or a championship main event, the NXT roster will always leave it all in the ring, bringing everything that brought them to the limelight on the indie scene and giving the Full Sail audience a reason to lose their voices.
Prepare yourselves for quite a statement; I’d honestly compare the current NXT landscape to that of the Attitude Era. Every single performer is a bonafide superstar. Each wrestler is as over as the next that walks out of the curtain. You can easily describe each gimmick and think of at least ten other names that you’d love to see them compete against.
AEW on the other hand, has about a handful of marquee athletes, and a few that might go on to be a big deal in the future. I’m not feeling any presence, or reason to pay attention to more than those few. Credit where it’s due, when it matters, AEW is able to pull it out of the bag. The few pay-per-view events they’ve had have each had some MOTY contenders – look no further than Dustin/Cody, Omega/Moxley or Lucha Bros/Young Bucks – there’s no doubt that there’s heaps of potential, but as it stands, not enough to compete with the juggernaut that is NXT every single week.
Of course, this is all down to personal opinion. I’m sure there’s plenty of AEW fans out there that enjoy a more gimmicky Dynamite a lot more than the wrestle-fest that is NXT. As you can probably guess, I’m a lot more inclined to watch spot-fests and 5-star performances than I am to watch Brandi Rhodes putting together a voodoo cult with Awesome Kong.
But for now at least, I know exactly which side of the fence I’m standing on. Everyone involved with NXT is currently firing on all cylinders: the Cruiserweights, the Women’s division, the mid-card and of course the top-tiers. Even from a technical perspective, NXT is leagues ahead of AEW’s infant production. Dynamite might have the flash and flair of pyrotechnics and light shows, but NXT has that modern, grungey aesthetic that appeals to the exact demographic that NXT is targeting. AEW seem to be in an ongoing identity crisis, attempting to mix traditional sports with the comic-book wackiness found only in the wrestling industry. They really need to start upping their game if they hope to make NXT ‘the B show’ of Wednesday nights.
But enough about my opinion, which side are you on? Do you prefer AEW to NXT? What draws you to either show on a Wednesday night? Let us know in the comments.
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