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[DE.]

Another good episode of NWA Powerrr this week, they've gotten into a really nice groove since coming back from the Into the Fire PPV.

Not sure how I feel about them teaming up with ROH. I guess they need the exposure but ROH is at its lowest point right now so not sure how much it'll help. Flip Gordon challenging Aldis for the title at Hard to Kill is cool I guess, but at the same time I'd rather it was someone from the normal NWA roster. Not convinced Flip Gordon is a big enough name to draw in extra PPV buys, but who knows. 

Random observations from the episode:

- I love the Rock n Roll Express but damn they look old, especially Robert Gibson. 

- Bald Scott Steiner looks really weird. He also looks pretty immobile now, was kind of sad to see him in the ring in such a limited capacity. No idea if that's all he can do now or whether NWA is just protecting him for future events. I haven't seen him wrestle properly in years so not sure if he's like this normally or just looked limited here. The guy is 57 to be fair.

- Pope should have been so much more than he ended up becoming. So much charisma and mic skills, decent in the ring too. 

- Ashley Vox and Melina made me wonder what the point is in having a women's only show for Powerrr. I really don't think their women's roster is good enough to carry an entire show.

[DE.]

Also I watched an interview Chris Van Vliet did with Chris Benoit's son, David Benoit. Chris is a great interviewer but it was hard for him at times with this one. David seems quite introverted and would often only give three or four word answers to questions which led to Van Vliet having to constantly prod for more - and not always getting it. Can't help but feel for David though, you wouldn't wish what he's been through on anyone, and he still clearly idolises his dad despite what happened at the end.

He did say some pretty crazy things though. He thinks his dad should and will go in the WWE Hall of Fame someday (literally no chance). Also wants to become a wrestler, use the name "Chris Benoit", wrestle like Chris Benoit, use Benoit's "Whatever" theme by Our Lady Peace and even use the same gear as his dad. I thought this part of the interview was really sad as there is no chance of him ever getting anywhere in wrestling by copying his dad in every possible way. He has apparently tried to get into New Japan and AEW but no luck - although primarily because he doesn't seem able to commit to being trained. He seems to have his dad's love of the business but not the work ethic required to actually be in it. 

Looks scarily like his dad too. Spitting image. 

[Bigdoggsteel]

22 minutes ago, DE. said:

Another good episode of NWA Powerrr this week, they've gotten into a really nice groove since coming back from the Into the Fire PPV.

Not sure how I feel about them teaming up with ROH. I guess they need the exposure but ROH is at its lowest point right now so not sure how much it'll help. Flip Gordon challenging Aldis for the title at Hard to Kill is cool I guess, but at the same time I'd rather it was someone from the normal NWA roster. Not convinced Flip Gordon is a big enough name to draw in extra PPV buys, but who knows. 

Random observations from the episode:

- I love the Rock n Roll Express but damn they look old, especially Robert Gibson. 

- Bald Scott Steiner looks really weird. He also looks pretty immobile now, was kind of sad to see him in the ring in such a limited capacity. No idea if that's all he can do now or whether NWA is just protecting him for future events. I haven't seen him wrestle properly in years so not sure if he's like this normally or just looked limited here. The guy is 57 to be fair.

- Pope should have been so much more than he ended up becoming. So much charisma and mic skills, decent in the ring too. 

- Ashley Vox and Melina made me wonder what the point is in having a women's only show for Powerrr. I really don't think their women's roster is good enough to carry an entire show.

Ya ,its odd. I suppose no point Eli Drake challenging if he isnt going to win. Not good for anyone. I dont know much about Flip to be honest. 

I love the R  and R Express. Ricky can cut a great promo. Robert shuffling awkwardly is unintentional comedy gold. My god he was really fumbling with the belt last night. They do look old and are certainly being well protected in the ring. God knows what the match with Aldis will be like next week. 

Steiners promo was classic Steiner. I couldn't bring myself to watch him wrestle. Too sad. 

I actually find Pope annoying. I think he has just been brought from back stage to have a POC on TV. 

Dreadful stuff. Sienna is ridiculous. Is her gimmick that she cant act? If so she is brilliant. 

[DE.]

Just now, Bigdoggsteel said:

Ya ,its odd. I suppose no point Eli Drake challenging if he isnt going to win. Not good for anyone. I dont know much about Flip to be honest. 

I love the R  and R Express. Ricky can cut a great promo. Robert shuffling awkwardly is unintentional comedy gold. My god he was really fumbling with the belt last night. They do look old and are certainly being well protected in the ring. God knows what the match with Aldis will be like next week. 

Steiners promo was classic Steiner. I couldn't bring myself to watch him wrestle. Too sad. 

I actually find Pope annoying. I think he has just been brought from back stage to have a POC on TV. 

Dreadful stuff. Sienna is ridiculous. Is her gimmick that she cant act? If so she is brilliant. 

Feels at this point like Powerrr needs a second hour tbh, they've got a big enough roster for it. Not sure they have the resources for a two hour show though.

R&R are great and yeah Gibson looks totally lost half the time! Good thing Morton does most of the talking. Think next week's match with Aldis will be short and sweet.

I was amused when they censored "white trash" in Steiner's promo but not fatasses or rednecks... I mean, is white trash really any worse of an insult?

Pope is a bit like a knock off Rock fused with R-Truth. If he had some proper direction he'd be great, but I don't think he's really had that since he was Elijah Burke in WWE and look how that turned out.

[DE.]

Some big news just come out: Dynamite has been extended to 2023 on TNT and the network has greenlit a second show to be aired. They must be very happy with how it's been performing so far. A second show should help them with fitting all of the stories in and not having half of them on BTE or Dark. I do wonder how the roster will react though as many of them signed on to do just the one weekly show and PPV once a month - I'm sure the extremely light schedule was a big part of many wrestlers signing. Now they're looking at two shows a week plus PPV. WCW expanding to two shows with Thunder totally killed them, so I hope AEW learns from those mistakes and rotates the roster between both shows to avoid burnout. They've certainly got a big enough cast to do so. 

[Bigdoggsteel]

2 hours ago, DE. said:

Some big news just come out: Dynamite has been extended to 2023 on TNT and the network has greenlit a second show to be aired. They must be very happy with how it's been performing so far. A second show should help them with fitting all of the stories in and not having half of them on BTE or Dark. I do wonder how the roster will react though as many of them signed on to do just the one weekly show and PPV once a month - I'm sure the extremely light schedule was a big part of many wrestlers signing. Now they're looking at two shows a week plus PPV. WCW expanding to two shows with Thunder totally killed them, so I hope AEW learns from those mistakes and rotates the roster between both shows to avoid burnout. They've certainly got a big enough cast to do so. 

They need to fall into an A and B roster 

[Bigdoggsteel]

 

2 hours ago, DE. said:

Feels at this point like Powerrr needs a second hour tbh, they've got a big enough roster for it. Not sure they have the resources for a two hour show though.

R&R are great and yeah Gibson looks totally lost half the time! Good thing Morton does most of the talking. Think next week's match with Aldis will be short and sweet.

I was amused when they censored "white trash" in Steiner's promo but not fatasses or rednecks... I mean, is white trash really any worse of an insult?

Pope is a bit like a knock off Rock fused with R-Truth. If he had some proper direction he'd be great, but I don't think he's really had that since he was Elijah Burke in WWE and look how that turned out.

Ya, that was gas. It was such a stereotypical steiner promo,all that was missing was some math. 

Ya,maybe with some direction. I didnt watch WWE when he was in it, but I had the Warzone (I think) video game that he was in. I remember him in TNA. Kind of like Matt Morgan and Crimson as in they pushed him to the main event,but never pulled the trigger. He seems to be doing well with the backstage stuff there. 

[DE.]

1 minute ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

They need to fall into an A and B roster 

Apparently the second show is going to be a taped one hour broadcast, but AEW Dark will continue to run on YouTube as its own show. Both shows matches will be done on the same night as Dynamite, so that'll be almost four hours of wrestling for that live crowd... will have to see how that goes. It's a lot to sit through. At least the talent will still only have to work one night a week, so their schedule won't be compromised by the second show in the same way WCW & WWF employees were back in the day with Thunder & Smackdown respectively.

I can see it being similar to something like WCW Saturday Night or WCW Pro. Not essential viewing but worth watching for storyline explanations & small progressions here and there. 

2 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Ya,maybe with some direction. I didnt watch WWE when he was in it, but I had the Warzone (I think) video game that he was in. I remember him in TNA. Kind of like Matt Morgan and Crimson as in they pushed him to the main event,but never pulled the trigger. He seems to be doing well with the backstage stuff there. 

Pope was in WWE around 2007ish and Warzone I think was 1997 so definitely not that one! I think he would have been in Smackdown Vs Raw 2008 though. I'd stopped buying wrestling games by that point, I skipped a ton of games. I had Smackdown Vs Raw 2006 on the PS2, but didn't pick up another wrestling game until WWE '13. Haven't bought any since then. Those games just don't interest me much anymore. 

[Bigdoggsteel]

2 hours ago, DE. said:

Apparently the second show is going to be a taped one hour broadcast, but AEW Dark will continue to run on YouTube as its own show. Both shows matches will be done on the same night as Dynamite, so that'll be almost four hours of wrestling for that live crowd... will have to see how that goes. It's a lot to sit through. At least the talent will still only have to work one night a week, so their schedule won't be compromised by the second show in the same way WCW & WWF employees were back in the day with Thunder & Smackdown respectively.

I can see it being similar to something like WCW Saturday Night or WCW Pro. Not essential viewing but worth watching for storyline explanations & small progressions here and there. 

Pope was in WWE around 2007ish and Warzone I think was 1997 so definitely not that one! I think he would have been in Smackdown Vs Raw 2008 though. I'd stopped buying wrestling games by that point, I skipped a ton of games. I had Smackdown Vs Raw 2006 on the PS2, but didn't pick up another wrestling game until WWE '13. Haven't bought any since then. Those games just don't interest me much anymore. 

I must have imagined playing as him in the game so ? I got WWE 18. I liked picking old Sting(88) once or twice, but I found the reversal system hard to time correctly and it just broke it for me. 

[DE.]

Warzone had Ahmed Johnson but he wasn't quite as good at talking as Pope, to say the least  

 

The mechanics in modern WWE games look horrible tbh. I didn't mind WWE 13 too much, but I realised then that those games weren't really my thing anymore.

Here Comes The Pain on the PS2 was the peak imo. That game is a ton of fun. A lot of people like the N64 wrestling games but I never had an N64 so I didn't play them at the time, and nowadays the graphics look so bad it's hard to appreciate them without any nostalgia filter to smooth the rough edges out. Instead I had to put up with WCW Nitro and Thunder on the PS1, which I played a lot of at the time but in retrospect, even with nostalgia glasses on, are fucking shit. I had Warzone and Attitude too - both were slightly better than the WCW games but still pretty bad, although again I played them both a lot as a kid. 

Smackdown 1 & 2 on the PS1 were great though. I pretty much liked all the Smackdown games. SvR was where I started losing interest as the game mechanics started to become more annoying than fun, and it doesn't seem to have gotten a whole lot better since then. 

 

[Bigdoggsteel]

16 hours ago, DE. said:

Warzone had Ahmed Johnson but he wasn't quite as good at talking as Pope, to say the least  

 

The mechanics in modern WWE games look horrible tbh. I didn't mind WWE 13 too much, but I realised then that those games weren't really my thing anymore.

Here Comes The Pain on the PS2 was the peak imo. That game is a ton of fun. A lot of people like the N64 wrestling games but I never had an N64 so I didn't play them at the time, and nowadays the graphics look so bad it's hard to appreciate them without any nostalgia filter to smooth the rough edges out. Instead I had to put up with WCW Nitro and Thunder on the PS1, which I played a lot of at the time but in retrospect, even with nostalgia glasses on, are fucking shit. I had Warzone and Attitude too - both were slightly better than the WCW games but still pretty bad, although again I played them both a lot as a kid. 

Smackdown 1 & 2 on the PS1 were great though. I pretty much liked all the Smackdown games. SvR was where I started losing interest as the game mechanics started to become more annoying than fun, and it doesn't seem to have gotten a whole lot better since then. 

 

Ha ha, that's the game alright. 

My neighbor had an N64, they don't look good now, but were great fun and very smooth to play at the time. Great rosters too if I recall. 

[DE.]

I have an N64 Everdrive now which is cool, but honestly I hate the N64 controller. The analogue stick is horrible and after being used to using two for so long it's awkward only having one.

Looks like AEW have signed Taz. Imagine he'll commentate on the second show and when Schiavone isn't available for Dynamite. 

Also apparently Dark is going to be the show that moves to TNT. Probably with a new name and slightly retooled format. I'll miss Dark in its current format as I enjoy watching it, but it'll be interesting to see what they do with it. 

Edited January 16, 2020 by DE.

[Mike E]

Sad news today that Rocky Johnson has passed away

[DE.]

Rocky Johnson was before my time but judging by the reaction he was much loved across the wrestling sphere.

[DE.]

Ratings for this week: AEW 940k with a 0.38 demo (5th overall for cable), NXT 700k with a 0.21 demo (31st overall). Three weeks of 900k+ viewers in a row for AEW now. 

Haven't watched NXT yet but have to say I really enjoyed AEW's "Bash at the Beach" episode of Dynamite this week. It was a huge improvement on last week's effort and it's good to see they are retaining viewership after a rocky end to the year. Apparently they're getting over a million viewers in DVR ratings as well so combined with their new TNT contract things are looking pretty good for them right now.

The opening four way tag match was a great way to open the show. Page/Omega going over was a good decision and they played into Omega/Page's storyline well, with Page being a little out of control with his actions and Kenny trying to reign him in. Solid interview from Cody afterwards, much better than last week's damp squib. 

Nightmare collective stuff was shit as usual and is dragging down Statlander and Shida. They need to get rid of this faction ASAP but I don't think it's going to happen. Cruise and Brandi Rhodes didn't look good in the ring at all. Very clunky and one of the only low points in the show.

The Dark Order vignette was well produced as usual but hokey as hell. I wish they and the Nightmare Collective would go away tbh. I don't think they're adding anything to the show. 

Moxley/Guevara was a good match although I felt Guevara maybe got a little bit too much offence in. A minor criticism though. The post match attack on Moxley was well done although I thought the spike to the eye was a little much, especially as it was obvious Jericho got nowhere near Moxley's eye. Good heat nonetheless and a solid post-attack promo from the Inner Circle. 

The six man tag between DDP/Dustin Rhodes/QT and MJF/Butcher/Blade was actually better than I expected. DDP looks great for his age and can still move really well. That DDPY stuff clearly works! MJF getting the pin on QT makes sense although I'm a little surprised MJF took a diamond cutter already. Nonetheless, enjoyable segment. The segment afterwards with Hangman/Omega and SCU was well done too.

Main event of Darby Allin/PAC was pretty good, with Darby looking really strong in defeat. AEW are obviously trying to make Allin into a star - he has that Jeff Hardy kind of appeal which could definitely put him into that higher tier if he continues to develop. Meanwhile PAC is just a solid worker and a great heel. Ridiculous how WWE neutered him and had him in a weak babyface role followed by a limited cruiserweight heel role for so long. The match between PAC and Moxley next week should be a banger. They're building to Jericho/Moxley for Revolution so I expect Mox to win, but his eye injury casts some doubt over the result for casuals watching.

So overall a very good show. AEW are finally pushing the Elite more seriously which no doubt is helping them retain their viewers, as many of them are interested in AEW because of the Elite. Jericho and Moxley are both incredible talents to have, whilst the Inner Circle is a superb faction. AEW has so much going for it right now and it feels like they're only scratching the surface of what's possible for them. I'm back to looking forward to Dynamite after a few rough weeks at the end of last year, and next week's Jericho Cruise edition should be a lot of fun as well. 

Got to say as an aside I enjoyed the announcing in this episode too. JR/Schiavone/Excaliber have great chemistry which is getting better each week. I've been so used to hating commentary on WWE broadcasts that I almost forgot commentary can actually add to the product rather than take away from it. The genuine enthusiasm from the AEW commentators is so refreshing compared to the sterile, forced commentary we hear Raw & Smackdown. 

[Bigdoggsteel]

Power was decent last night. A longer episode. Have to say though, the Stevens/ Question mark segment was too long. They turned a good 30 second skit into a 5 minute slog. 

Sienna, I just don't get. Herself and Melinas promo was dreadful. It appears to me they just make the promos up on the fly. The ladies are not good at this.

Some good matches overall, thought the endings were too similar in the Murdoch/Latimer and Aldis/Morton matches. Although, all things considered they did a good job on the Title match allowing for the fact Morton is almost 70. 

I think I will order the PPV. The last time I did this was about 7 years ago for a Royal Rumble. 

Edited January 22, 2020 by Bigdoggsteel

[DE.]

Pretty much agree with your comments. Not sure if the longer runtime is permanent or just a one off, but I'm happy to watch an extra half an hour personally and think it helps the show feel less rushed. Just don't stretch out segments like Question Mark/Stevens/Starks. 

When is the women's version of Powerrr starting? With the length of the show increased I don't know if it's really necessary. Still not convinced the NWA women's division has the quality or star power to run its own show.

Edited January 22, 2020 by DE.

[Bigdoggsteel]

47 minutes ago, DE. said:

Pretty much agree with your comments. Not sure if the longer runtime is permanent or just a one off, but I'm happy to watch an extra half an hour personally and think it helps the show feel less rushed. Just don't stretch out segments like Question Mark/Stevens/Starks. 

When is the women's version of Powerrr starting? With the length of the show increased I don't know if it's really necessary. Still not convinced the NWA women's division has the quality or star power to run its own show.

I presumed that it was a one-off last night before the PPV. Not sure though. I would definitely watch another half an hour 

I have no idea, I wouldn't have high hopes for it. From what I have seen the women ,barring Tunder Rosa, can't wrestle. 

I'm intrigued about how the company is run. Billy Corgan was out last night,that was weird. I think they are doing well blurring the lines between storylines and reality. It seems Aldis has a huge stake in it. It's a great role and I think he is playing it well. 

Edited January 22, 2020 by Bigdoggsteel

[DE.]

@Bigdoggsteel did you order Hard Times in the end? I've just watched it and thought it was a decent if not spectacular show. The audio was a bit off at the start but seemed to stabilise as the event went on, but there were still glitches throughout the night. I heard someone in the crowd yell "fire the sound guy" at one point which got a chuckle out of me. Spoilers ahead btw so if you haven't watched the show yet and are planning to don't read any further...

Question Mark/Murdoch was alright, although it felt like a match that could have been on Powerrr. Also a bit surprised they had QM take the L here. Was a bit of an underwhelming way for him to take his first defeat.

Dice/Maff was another match that was okay. Neither guy is in great shape but I think Maff has some serious upside. Dice has a great personality but his look isn't great for a proper competitor. He's not in shape at all. I think he'd be better as a manager/interviewer.

Starks/Cross was a solid match with the right guy going over. Starks has a lot going for him and it wouldn't surprise me if he ended up on NXT or AEW sooner rather than later. He's got all the tools to become a player at a higher level imo.

Not sure why Ken Anderson wasn't at the show, I assume an injury, but I figured they'd get Storm another opponent. A bit disappointing that they just gave him a bye, but I guess it gave a little more time to some of the other matches. Storm's promo was really good as usual. It's a shame Storm never got a shot in WWE or TNA when he was a bit younger, as he's so charasmatic and likeable, plus a decent hand in the ring. At 54 I can't imagine he'll ever get to WWE or AEW at this point - still looks incredible for his age though. 

They announced the next PPV will be the Crockett Cup, which should in theory be a decent draw, and said the event will be held somewhere bigger. That's good news as whilst the studio setting is fine for Powerrr I don't think it conveys the 'big feel' needed for a PPV show. It just makes it seem like an extended edition of Powerrr. 

Good triple threat tag match for the titles. I like that competitors from all three teams were in the ring rather than just two of them. I never understand when there are multiple tag team matches and there are only two competitors in the ring, able to tag anybody whether it's their own partner or not. Those rules make zero sense to me. An an aside Ricky Morton of all people hitting a Canadian Destroyer never gets old. A visual I never thought I'd see! Storm/Drake going over was fine. With the age of the RnR Express you can't realistically keep the titles on them for that long, even though it was nice to see them get another brief run. 

Thunder Rosa going over Allysin Kay was the right call, as TR is by far the best and most popular wrestler in the women's division. Kay is, imo, too bland to be the champion and in-ring she's nothing special either. The match itself was pretty good and a long one, but compared to what we see from the gals in WWE/AEW, NWA's women's divisions always comes off as second-rate to me. Thunder Rosa is another one I'd expect to see in NXT/AEW at some point. She seems a bit wasted in the NWA women's division tbh. End of this match was a bit weird, TR's finish appeared botched to me although she did hit it.

Maff/Murdoch was just a quick hoss fight. NWA seem to be going full in with a Murdoch push putting him over Question Mark and Maff. 

Storm/Starks was a bit disappointing, although I have no problem with Starks going over as he's clearly got more long-term mileage than Storm at this point.

Stevens/Steiner was just a throwaway, obviously building to more down the line. Question Mark taking the Steiner Recliner further burying him on this show. I wonder if they're cooling the push they've been giving him. 

I was a bit confused by the TV title tournament final being in the main event ahead of the world title. Aldis/Gordon is a much bigger match than Murdoch/Starks. Weird decision. I certainly wouldn't have thought Trevor Murdoch would be headlining NWA's second post-Powerrr PPV. As I mentioned before Starks definitely has something about him, although I wouldn't say he's been built up to main event level yet. 

Anyway, Aldis/Gordon was a good match even though the result itself was never in doubt. I think the lack of major storyline build hurt it a little, as it had absolutely nothing to do with any of the Powerrr tapings beyond the highlights they showed of the ROH event where Aldis showed up and attacked Gordon. If it got more PPV buys then I guess that's all that matters, but I'd rather have seen someone like Eli Drake in that position personally.

Starks/Murdoch was okay - not really main event quality but fine for what it was. It's cool to see Starks get the strap as he has a huge upside and should be featuring more prominently on Powerrr. Hopefully being the TV champ will help with that. 

Overall I thought it was a good show, albeit not as good as Into the Fire and probably not as good as some of the recent Powerrr episodes. In a lot of ways it felt like a massively extended Powerrr show rather than a PPV, although that is at least partially due to the studio location and the lack of cosmetic alterations to even alert the viewer to the show being different to normal. I think they'll address this at the next PPV though. 

Edited January 25, 2020 by DE.

[DE.]

Also as an aside I've stopped watching Smackdown entirely now. There's just too much wrestling over the week to watch all of it, and SD isn't good or exciting enough for me to put time into watching. I like NXT but I've stopped watching that as well. Again just limited time, as I do like NXT. I'll probably still watch the major episodes and Takeovers though. Nowadays I basically just watch Raw, AEW Dynamite/Dark and Powerrr. 

[Mike E]

Caught up on the latest AEW Dynamite.

Imagine walking through a crowd on YOUR cruise, that's singing along to YOUR theme song , which is a rock song YOU wrote, while YOU'RE World Champion.

Chris Jericho has reached a whole new level of 'made it'. Greatest wrestler of all time imo.

[Mike E]

Been thinking about AEW and the potential midcard title they could have.

I'd like to see a TV title that MUST be defended every week. When you've successfully defended the belt for, say, 8 weeks running, you get a guaranteed AEW title match.

At that point, you MUST vacate the TV title, which is then competed for by the 2 wrestlers with best win-loss record for the length of the last reign.

This way AEW have a chance to strap rockets on people to the AEW title within 8-9 weeks if they so wish (like a Royal Rumble winner), while also giving the midcard something constant to compete for (win-loss record matters).

I'd also add a stip whereby anyone losing the AEW title cannot compete for it for # weeks, meaning they have to earn their shot again, just like anyone else.

I'd also recycle the 'King of the Ring' gimmick into their own tournament idea, having regular #1 contender tournaments for the AEW title twice a year.

Good/bad idea?

Edited January 26, 2020 by Mike E

[DE.]

9 hours ago, Mike E said:

Caught up on the latest AEW Dynamite.

Imagine walking through a crowd on YOUR cruise, that's singing along to YOUR theme song , which is a rock song YOU wrote, while YOU'RE World Champion.

Chris Jericho has reached a whole new level of 'made it'. Greatest wrestler of all time imo.

Yeah, the whole crowd singing along was pretty awesome too. I'm not a huge fan of Fozzy in general but Judas is a banger. 

8 hours ago, Mike E said:

Been thinking about AEW and the potential midcard title they could have.

I'd like to see a TV title that MUST be defended every week. When you've successfully defended the belt for, say, 8 weeks running, you get a guaranteed AEW title match.

At that point, you MUST vacate the TV title, which is then competed for by the 2 wrestlers with best win-loss record for the length of the last reign.

This way AEW have a chance to strap rockets on people to the AEW title within 8-9 weeks if they so wish (like a Royal Rumble winner), while also giving the midcard something constant to compete for (win-loss record matters).

I'd also add a stip whereby anyone losing the AEW title cannot compete for it for # weeks, meaning they have to earn their shot again, just like anyone else.

I'd also recycle the 'King of the Ring' gimmick into their own tournament idea, having regular #1 contender tournaments for the AEW title twice a year.

Good/bad idea?

I think AEW definitely needs a proper midcard title. I'm not sure how NWA Powerrr has two mid card titles and AEW has none. For me the basic aim of any wrestler in a promotion should be to become a champion. In AEW the male wrestlers only have the world title and the tag team titles to go for. That leaves a ton of mid card matches just being matches with no real purpose beyond boosting the win-loss statistics. 

I would add a few more titles personally. A light-heavyweight/cruiserweight title would be cool for the lighter competitors. I'd never buy Marko Stunt as a world champion, but I could definitely buy him as a cruiserweight champ. A mid-card title for all weights that acts as a bridge to the world championship is surely a must at some point (US/TV/Intercontinenal equivilent). I would also consider a Trios title due to the amount of three man tags AEW has. It's something that hasn't really been done in the States before and would help AEW stand out. 

I'm not sure any defined rules on the titles need to be added - the main issue with that is that it can limit storyline options and increases the chances of plot holes or logic gaps, which wrestling tends to have issues with anyway. All they need to do is make sure every title actually means something. WWE's biggest problem in recent years has been making the mid-card titles seem meaningless, having champions regularly lose non-title matches and as a result title changes mean very little. A mid-card title should naturally build a star to the point where when they lose that title they are ready to step up to the main event scene. 

Tournaments are great if done right. WWE seems to have largely gone off the idea on the main roster so it's a gap AEW could fill if done correctly. A cruiserweight tournament to crown the first champion would be great as they could bring in all sorts of amazing high-flyers from around the world to compete, as WCW used to do back in the day. 

[Mike E]

Just finished Royal Rumble. Bloody loved the story they told in the men's, and the quality of the women's just showed how vital the NXT women's division is.

Highlight of the night was when Keith Lee came out vs Brock. Brock responded:

'Wow. Big boy! Paul, who's this motherfucker?'

[Miller11]

Royal Rumble was fantastic. Best PPV in years.

Don't understand the complaints about Charlotte winning. She is head and shoulders above any other female wrestler on the planet, not showcasing her at Wrestlemania would be ridiculous.

The men’s Rumble was perfect. I’d go as far as to say it’s the second best ever, after 92.