>>11868953For me, the following red flags ultimately destroyed my interested in AEW and made me go from a zealot to making me absolutely more repulsed than ever for the business:
>keeping Marko StuntOne of the early signs. I loved AEW but Marko stuck out like a sore thumb. I gave Tony cred back then for pulling the plug on stuff like Nightmare Collective. So him keeping Marko was annoying. But I kept watching, and then:
>Brodie Lee with the Dark Order lawnmowersI liked Dark Order and didn't mind their missteps. They just needed to find their footing. Brodie as the leader was exciting. Didn't watch BTE so I only followed the "Dynamite canon". DO showing up with lawnmowers was to me the next huge red flag. Seeing that without any context made it awkward and amateurish.
>sparklersThe build up was exciting. Bought the PPV and enjoyed it. Then the sparklers happened. I was disappointed and how TK handled it made it worse. It was at this point I went from being a fanboy to having serious doubts.
>Hangman winning the beltI was a big Hangman fan. His story would've been great if they pulled the trigger at the right time. AEW had great stories then, despite everything. Moxley's feud with Jericho and "losing" an eye was kino. With Hangman, TK let real life take over and they blue balled the fans with Hangman fucking around with DO for weeks, then parental leave before getting the belt. Once he won, I had a "meh"-feeling. Prior to that his redemption arc was to me, the most hyped thing going on.
>Danhausen debutFinally, this was the final red flag and nail in the coffin to me. I already felt pretty apathetic towards AEW. When Danhausen showed, and Excalibur, along with the crowd all acted as if you're supposed to know who Danhausen and his schtick is, I was fed up. When you can't explain basic shit, expecting everyone to know some meme wrestler, then you're just gatekeeping. This was it. This killed my interest, not only for AEW but for wrestling altogether.
