The concept that there might be “good” wrestling debate might be excessive comedy to any non-wrestling fan, given the notion that they most likely have for creatures like us (not all that incorrect both). It’s changing into fairly farcical within the wrestling world as nicely today, given the cut up between AEW and WWE followers. Everybody’s of their trench, and Surprise Lady ain’t coming to bridge the divide.
There was no higher show than the lead-up to final evening’s Dynamite most important occasion between Kenny Omega and El Hijo Del Vikingo, making his US tv debut. By some means, a match that was solely about introducing the youthful Vikingo to American audiences generated an exhausting and actually bewildering dialogue about why this match mattered or not as a result of it didn’t have any construct or story apart from, “El Hijo Del Vikingo involves the States.”
The place this “debate” began is anybody’s guess, however almost definitely it got here from essentially the most New York-pilled followers the web can discover posing as AEW followers or not even bothering. Anybody who follows even the slightest little bit of wrestling exterior WWE had at the very least heard the title of El Hijo Del Vikingo, and had heard he was setting the luchador world alight together with his galactic work at such a younger age (25). Most knew that Omega was alleged to face him in Mexico in 2021 however his accidents received in the way in which of that. Whereas a majority most likely hadn’t seen various his matches, or perhaps even one, they’d virtually actually heard the title and knew concerning the buzz being generated.
No matter followers didn’t learn about VIkingo’s introduction to American audiences ought to have been answered by the truth that his very first match was towards one of the best wrestler AEW has, and fairly presumably nonetheless one of the best wrestler on the planet, in Omega. If that’s who the corporate desires to place Vikingo towards largely sight unseen, it’s clearly a sign that this child fucking rips. And boy does he!
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The primary shot of this spotlight package deal is simply killer. The digital camera pans again to point out Vikingo isn’t ready round to get issues began, and goes for a suicide dive exterior the ring whereas nonetheless in his full Viking regalia, which makes it appear to be he morphed right into a pterodactyl throughout the run-up to it. The match by no means actually misplaced any tempo from there, with each males pulling off some unfathomable execution of strikes that might have brought about wrestlers from even 15 years in the past to stroke out. Vikingo particularly confirmed off what had been producing headlines and whispers and pleasure throughout borders just by phrase of mouth. Like, what the fuck is that this?
(This contained the spotlight of the match for me, Tony Schiavone on commentary merely giving up on attempting to understand something he was seeing with an understated, “Jesus…”)
For individuals who care about such issues, or extra precisely are simply ready round to yuck another person’s yum, the match itself advised a high quality story of Omega struggling to return to grips with the pure athleticism and bravado of his a lot youthful opponent, however utilizing his expertise to lastly come to grips with the unholy pressure he was coping with and eventually overcome him. It wasn’t only a sequence of flips and dives signifying nothing, as it can assuredly be derided as by these sporting Randy Orton t-shirts.
It’s yet one more notch within the unmatched belt of Omega, who has wrestled precisely two singles matches this 12 months (the opposite being towards Will Ospreay at Wrestle Kingdom) and each of them will definitely end in everybody’s high 5 matches of 2023. The Wrestle Kingdom match has most likely already made itself at dwelling atop most everybody’s listing. Whereas Omega nonetheless hints at retiring, he did so once more proper after this match, and rumors swirl about his contract standing with AEW, he’s nonetheless placing on one of the best matches anybody’s seen for the sixth or seventh 12 months operating.
All of the prematch horseshit did was present the rising divide between WWE followers from the remainder of wrestling followers. If AEW or anybody else wanted to see some half-assed construct jammed into the bloodstream resulting in a match that can most likely look rather a lot like ones we’ve seen earlier than and never reside as much as what it might be, everybody can simply tune into regardless of the fuck Triple H has Asuka and Bianca Belair doing earlier than Mania. However as a result of WWE followers are so unaware of something exterior the New York realm, and actually fairly pleased with that, they needed to sneer at one thing that might by no means occur in WWE and guise it as criticism of some imaginary “construct” to justify their willful ignorance and inflexibility.
The entire level, from the very announcement, was to present El Hijo Del Vikingo a platform to announce himself and make folks need to see extra, whereas additionally giving Omega one other likelihood to enthrall in a approach solely he can. They usually did that. If there are followers on the market nonetheless grumbling about it “simply being a wrestling match,” that’s their loss.
