For a long time, WWE features a rather annoying trope – an annual gimmick match. Although some steps have been taken to remove some calendars of these mandatory regulations, both TLC and HELL will be removed in cell PPV to bring the match back to its previous glory, WWE still struggles somewhat to host annual Wargames matches. Unfortunately, this spreads throughout the world of wrestling, aew. There are some useful things that AEW can learn from WWE, but this is not one of them. However, every year around this time, AEW falls into traps.
WWE’s annual gimmick match ruined certain regulations
Cell, Wargames, TLC hellish things suffered
- WWE booked certain gimmick matches each year at certain shows.
- Fans knew they would expect specific booking instructions at certain points in the year.
- We feel that bookings are being forced, especially during wargame season.
Once upon a time, WWE protected the gimmick match. Hell’s Cell was the ultimate feud ender, TLC was a big treat for fans, and Wargames was a mysterious concept lost in the WCW era. But over time, supersaturation and annual name PPV ruined these concepts. The annual hell of Cell PPV forced WWE to book a match that doesn’t deserve a gimmick and host multiple hosts per night. Removed this show from the calendar and hosting matches modestly (and also taking away the scary red cage) has helped me retrieve some of the gimmicks over the last few years.
The latest victim of this ruse is Wargames. NXT reintroduced WARGAME as the concept, bringing the old two-cage WCW match type to WWE. It was a lot of fun at first, but then the multi-person feud became predictable, and moreover, both male and female matches were hosted every year, with less special. In 2022, Triple H brought the concept to the Survivor series. I live there every year. It worked well at first, but I feel that multiple matches per show, wars of forced facts and predictability aren’t that special. AEW has done well over the years to avoid the WWE ratios that cause a lot of damage, but unfortunately this is something they haven’t escaped – and it needs to change.
AEW’s anarchy in the arena will suffer the same fate
Every year, interest in AEW’s chaotic games is declining.
- AEW is done in double or notebooks, selecting disorder in the arena.
- This is the fourth consecutive year of this match rule in 2025.
- The quality of these AEW gimmick matches is decreasing every year.
In 2020, AEW introduced a Stadium Stampede Match, adding twice the fun and confusion or nothing, due to the lack of fans attendance. The match returned the following year. As AEW started touring again by the time AEW hadn’t rolled over the next year, by the time he hadn’t rolled anything, AEW introduced Anarchy to the Arena concept and continued to do these special multiman matchups on the show. At first it was amazing and it was a lot of fun. Fans enjoyed going to many top stars in the ring.
With Tony Khan pledging to keep this match in PPV, fans were able to predict and predict that AEW storytelling is heading for a double or notebook season, as the same ratios continue each year. The anarchy of the arena match has always been of high quality, but it’s safe to say that the overall popularity is gradually decreasing each year. Heading into 2025, AEW began building for yet another disorder on Arena Match. This is beginning to feel a bit more forced and flat concept, similar to WWE’s annual gimmick match.
Fans get tired of forced bookings by AEW right away
If they continue this trick, aee will suffer the same as WWE
- Every May and June are the disorder of Arena and Blood & Guts seasons.
- AEW fans watch predictable gang battles every year at the same time.
- These matches should only be made when the storyline directs it – not the other way around.
2025 was the best example of anarchy of the arena’s forced sentiment, as the group of allies joined forces on both the babyface and heel sides to ensure that there are two complete factions in the match, and simply feel forced. These matches should only occur when the storyline is naturally heading in that direction, rather than when the storyline is written at a particular time of the year. Worse, blood & gut usually follows the arena disorder. It is often a rematch involving similar names, consistent over the past four years.
result | Match type | Events and dates | I won | cagematch.net review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Elite & Matt Hardy defeated the inner circle | Stadium Stampede | Double or nothing, May 23, 2020 | n/a | 9.21 |
The vertex defeated the inner circle | Blood and Guts | Dynamite: Blood & Guts, May 5, 2021 | 4.5 stars | 7.47 |
The inner circle defeated the vertex | Stadium Stampede | Double or nothing, May 30, 2021 | n/a | 7.31 |
Jericho Appreciation Society defeated Blackpool Combat Club, Eddie Kingston, Santana and Ortiz | Anarchy in Arena | Double or nothing, May 29, 2022 | 5 stars | 9.07 |
Blackpool Combat Club, Eddie Kingston, Santana and Ortiz defeated Jericho Appreciation Association | Blood and Guts | Dynamite: Blood & Guts, June 29, 2022 | 4.75 stars | 8.42 |
Blackpool Combat Club defeated the elite | Anarchy in Arena | Double or nothing, May 28, 2023 | 5 stars | 8.73 |
Golden Elite defeated Blackpool’s Battle Club, Konosuke Takeshita & Pack | Blood and Guts | Dynamite: Blood & Guts, July 19, 2023 | 4.75 stars | 8.13 |
Best friends, Penta, Orange Cassidy and Eddie Kingston defeated Blackpool Combat Club, Santana & Ortiz | Stadium Stampede | All: London, August 27, 2023 | 4.5 stars | 8.02 |
The elite defeated FTR, Brian Danielson and Derby Allyn | Anarchy in Arena | Double or nothing, May 26, 2024 | 4.5 stars | 8.32 |
Swerve Strickland, Darby Allin, praised The Mark Briscoe defeated the elite | Blood and Guts | Dynamite: Blood & Guts, July 24, 2024 | 4.75 stars | 8.47 |
TBD | Anarchy in Arena | Double or nothing, May 25, 2025 | TBD | TBD |
Both of these matches suffer, and when it comes to booking matches, they will continue to suffer if their approach is not different to WWE’s approach. For example, if the arena anana is announced for the end of the world, or if the arena anana is announced, which takes place in dynamite in October rather than during the summer, then it would feel much more special if the story was developed naturally. Also, if this is the case, storytelling becomes unpredictable. AEW needs to step lightly before turning these two concepts into similar, failed, tired match types like WWE Cells and Wargames.
