How big a wrestling fan are you? What do you watch?

[NewROHFan2020]

Just curious, what everyone considers themselves. I heard of Brodie Lee’s tragic passing and I can tell you I have never seen a match of his. I watched the first month of AEW and haven’t really watched since and I haven’t watched WWE in years.

I watch ROH, obviously. I watch NWA, when they have new programming. I recently started watching MLW, but not a fan of them yet, like I am ROH and NWA.

I used to watch TNA/Impact, but I really started to lose interest when they moved to Pursuit, then Eli Drake and EC3 left and that was about it for me. I would occasionally watch NJPW when it was on AXS, but haven’t seen anything since they left AXS.

I don’t watch WWE because I have interest in other hobbies and “real” sports. Dedicating 7 hours a week to their TV plus any PPVs isn’t for me. I would give AEW a chance if I needed something new to watch. I don’t dislike them, but would rather watch ROH and NWA plus sports.

I would consider myself a “small” fan. Though I used to be a huge fan in the late 80s and 90s.

[kovs27]

I watch ROH, MLW and Impact regularly and did with the NWA when they had Power. I keep up to date with what is going on with New Japan but since the AXS show was canceled I haven't watched anything.

In pre-Covid days I would attend ROH when they were in New York, Philly and Baltimore. I would go to Impact and MLW when in Philly but not New York unless it was something special like a PPV. The location they would run is a pain in the ass to get to, especially if you have to work the next day.

I do attend GCW shows when they run in New Jersey. I am going to their New Years Eve and New Years Day shows in Atlantic City.

I picked pretty big as which level of fan I am. I'm willing to travel a bit to go to a show. A big reason for that is a lot of the same people go to all these tri-state shows and my girlfriend and I have made friends with them over the years. It's an excuse to see friends and get to watch wrestling.

[famicommander]

I watch every ROH and MLW show. I can't say with 100% certainty I've seen every ROH show but I've seen at least 90% of what is out there. ROH has been fantastic since the restart. MLW has been solid but there have been an awful lot of squash matches recently and it's beginning to stand out. What's the point of even watching when there is no question about the outcome? I mean it's fine to have somebody squash a jobber here and again but not every damn episode.

Prior to COVID I watched the majority of NJPW content (I maintain no human could watch all of it and still maintain a full time job and a social life). I let my NJPW subscription lapse but if I hear about a great match I'll still go check it out and I'll re-up for a month to watch Wrassle Kingdom. Even though most of the shows are in English I still found my four years of high school Japanese class useful. Despite the huge amount of worthless content they put out, the good stuff is usually the best in the biz.

There was also a time where I followed CMLL fairly closely but they put out an absurd amount of content as well and I don't speak a lick of Spanish. CMLL is reliable and predictable. They can be frustratingly slow to adapt or pull the trigger on certain guys but they're a welcome contrast to AAA, who does all of the stupid things 250% of the time and it results in 90% garbage television, 10% great television.

I followed AEW for the first six months or so but I don't keep up regularly. I hadn't been watching until Winter is Coming and I've already bailed again. I don't want to see Mike Tyson, Snoop Dogg, Shaq, Hornswoggle, guys over 60 wrestling, Marko Stunt, etc. When I signed up for AEW I had hoped we'd be getting a product similar to NJPW and ROH except with big network production. What we have mostly gotten is WWE with marginally better matches. Wrestling wedding stories always sucked so imagine my horror at discovering BOTH Impact and AEW were wrapped up in separate stupid wedding storylines when I came back to them.

Impact is that ex girlfriend whom the memory of is always better than the reality when you go back to her. For some reason I'm dumb enough to keep going back but I haven't followed them on a week to week basis for more than a month at a time in a long while. I jumped back in recently with the Omega stuff and the show has been pretty bad since then. They suffer from a lot of the same crappy camera work that plagues WWE and has snuck into AEW here and there. Frequent cuts in the middle of sequences, sometimes 3-4 camera cuts during a single move. It's jarring and annoying. I'd rather watch an NJPW midweek tour card with just the one hard camera than this. But I followed them from the FSN days through Pop TV and went back to watch the weekly PPVs before then. Right now the show is just WWE or AEW, but with a much shittier roster.

WWE is the culmination of every complaint I have about every other promotion on this list, except they also happen to be promoted by a guy who actively despises wrestling fans and is an aggressively horrible human being even on the already scummy scale of carny ass wrestling promoters. I grew up in the 90s consuming every bit of WWF, WCW, and ECW content I could find with basic cable and crappy dial up internet. Tape trading wasn't big here but my brothers and I knew one family who would sometimes have indie, Lucha, or Japanese stuff on VHS and we'd check those out. At times we didn't even have cable at our house so my grandmother would record Raw and Nitro for me (Granny wasn't gonna record Heat or Thunder for your jabroni ass, so know your role and shut your mouth). The Invasion was the end of me consuming WWE programming religiously. I've obviously seen and even enjoyed a lot of matches they've put out since then, but for me that was when I realized Vince cared more about dunking on two promotions he already killed than giving the fans good shows. I hated and still hate the brand split from day one, I hated the shift to TVPG, I hate the camera work, I hate the watered down wrestling. It's just not a product for me. Even if Vince were the greatest human on earth I still wouldn't watch a whole episode of Raw.

I try to check in every now and again on Dragon Gate, NOAH, and the indies but I just don't have the time anymore. But still, if a match from any promotion out there is getting rave reviews I'll try to catch it. Even if it's from WWE or AAA (Omega vs Laredo was good stuff).

It may seem that I'm inherently opposed to the less sports-based, abstract side of wrestling but that's not strictly true. I loved the hell out of Lucha Underground (mostly the first two seasons) and that's about as far from ROH or NJPW as you can get as far as presentation. To me I just need internal consistency. In Lucha Underground you're asked to believe a lot of crazy stuff from the outset, but it all hangs together if you accept those premises from the outset. I just hate when a show tries to do it halfway one or the other. You can't have characters like Bray Wyatt with super powers while he's still eating pins on a weekly basis. You can't try to sell me on the product as a legitimate sport on one hand and then have the Muppets interacting with the wrestlers in character.

[Montana]

My first thought was pretty big... but i'm sure if you asked my wife it would be huge...so i went huge. Been watching since 92; when i was about 10 years old.

I try and "keep up" with all the major companies. My favorite is ROH; but here's how i watch.

WWE Raw/SD/NXT - Pretty much DVR them all ... Prefer SD and NXT now; but i typically fast forward a fair amount of the shows; until there's a promo/match i wanna see.

AEW - Mainly Dynamite and the PPV's ... really like Dynamite ... hate AEW Dark. I used to like BTE... but not as much any more since it's like mainly Dark Order/ other AEW guys just joking around.

ROH - Watch everything ROH.. seen almost every live event.

Impact - I DVR it; but sometimes go 4-6 weeks in between watching. A lot of fast forwarding too.

MLW - Kinda like Impact; BUT i actually watch the show.

NJPW - I used to watch it more with their ties to ROH; and having Omega/Jericho; but now without the TV show; and i just don't like how NJPW world functions; i mainly just try and keep up with major storylines.

NWA - I just can't bring myself to watch it.

Like a few of the smallers promotions; but don't really follow them; unless they tour near where i live. Been to live 40-50 live events from WWE, TNA, Evolve and mostly ROH. Had action figures from my childhood; and mainly just collect DVDs for fun. Barely any wrestling shirts; or other merchandise. Only traveled maybe twice for a ROH show. In retrospect; i'm glad i did... but not something i do routinely. I routinely go on this site; and the ROH page. Bit on Reddit; but not much in terms of other wrestling sites.

[famicommander]

As far as going to live events, it's slim pickings here in Denver.

I used to see WWF and WCW when they'd come to town as a kid but since then I've only been to one terrible local indie show (Rocky Mountain Pro).

ROH has run zero shows in Denver
Impact has run zero shows in Denver (they ran one singular house show about 100 miles south of town years back)
MLW has run zero shows in Denver
AEW has run zero shows in Denver (they ran one in Broomfield, CO I thought about going to but it's a crappy drive and the weather sucked)
NJPW has run zero shows in Denver

We don't have any quality, established regional indies here, either. We get WWE, the shittiest of the shitty indies, or nothing.

I might consider going to the shitty indies except the pricing is bad. Denver is a major league sports town; you can get bleacher seats at the Rockies game for 4 bucks if you feel like waiting in line. You can get Colorado Mammoth NLL tickets (highest level of pro lacrosse in the world) for 10-15 bucks a pop. You can get upper deck Avs or Nuggets tickets for around 20 bucks. And we have the Broncos and the Rapids (MLS). So there's no way in hell I'm coughing up the same amount to see guys that can't even get booked by the west coast indies.

[Shanahan]

HUGE.

I watch WWE,NJPW,AEW,NXT,ROH,IMPACT,MLW,NWA,UWN,AAA,MLW,GCW,ICW,BJW,FREEDOMS,NOAH,all indies on IWTV,etc,etc,etc, My wife used to hate it but now she likes that i watch so much. she knows exactly where i'am. In the basement instead of out at a bar. lol

[Wavelet Transform]

I consider myself a "huge" fan based on how much wrestling I've seen in my lifetime. I don't have the time/interest to follow much these days, but I've been a heavy follower of all the major promotions (WWE, WCW, ECW, TNA, NJPW, ROH, and UFC) at one time or another.

WWE - Product is terribly uninteresting at the moment. I'll watch the big shows with friends, mainly because we've been doing so since the attitude era, but I couldn't care less about the titles, match outcomes, etc.... No one comes across like a star, the titles mean nothing, and they've ruined more great talents I loved in ROH/PWG than I care to remember. The last time I was heavily invested in anything WWE was the "New Daniel Bryan" era.

TNA - I'm happy they've stayed afloat all these years as they were an important alternative to WWE in the aughts. I'm personally grateful for the company, as it was how I discovered ROH (looked up where else I could see all the great X-division guys). Pleased to see their relevance boosted by the association with Omega. I like what they've done since Callis took the reigns, with the Callahan/Cage feud esp. standing out. I'll check their youtube every now and then, but that said, their product is a little too "out there" for my taste and their roster turns over too much to keep me interested.

NJPW - I was massively into NJPW from 2018-2019. ZSJ tearing through everyone in the New Japan Cup, Omega's rise, the Jericho surprise, and the general awesomeness of the G1 hooked me big time. I was watching every show for about a year. I still consider New Japan to be the highest level of professional wrestling in the world. In particular, I don't think there's anything else out there that can touch the main events of the big shows - they're just incredible. That said, watching the top of the card stagnate for so long finally burned me out. That, and Taichi, haha. All the great matches in the world don't mean anything if it's always going to be the same 4 people at the top of the card. Oddly enough, the G1 ended up both hooking and turning me off of the product. I loved the 2018 version and hated the outcomes (despite all the great matches) in the 2019 version enough that I quit watching NJPW. Really wish they'd done something w/ Tomohiro Ishii - the guy had so many incredible matches from 2017-2019. I'll still check headlines and read reviews, but until Bullet Club is disbanded, I'm out on NJPW.

AEW - I was excited for the launch of the company and bought the first ppv, which I was massively disappointed with. The matches were fine and I'm happy there's a real alternative to WWE, but I felt they missed a chance to do something truly different than WWE. I'd hoped for something edgier and truly distinct from WWE, something as different from WWE in 2019 as ECW was from WWF/WCW in 1995. Instead, it felt like a good, not great, WWE show with a different roster. I'm happy AEW exists and that so many formerly indy talents have a national platform, but I don't care for the storylines enough to regularly follow. They're also taking on too many WWE castaways for my taste.

PWG - I love PWG and still collect the shows on blu-ray. I think PWG, perhaps more than any other promotion, understands the value of staying true to its identity. They've never tried to secure a tv/ppv deal, they ran the same dumpy legion hall as long as they possibly could, and they've kept the general structure of the shows the same all these years and I think it's served them well. Not everyone could do what they do, but they make it work. The atmosphere, the dream matches, and the big moments of PWG are just awesome. I've been to 4 shows (3 at the Legion Hall and 1 at the Globe) and they're such a fun experience. They don't really do storylines, match outcomes can be predictable (don't ever bet on someone making their debut), and they're very liberal w/ kayfabe breaking, but if you can look past those things, you get some truly incredible matches and tons of fun with PWG.

UFC - Started following in 2014. I mention it mainly because it's an interesting contrast to see how fights are presented in MMA vs. pro-wrestling. I got truly hooked by watching an interview between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier prior to their second fight. If you're not familiar, Jones is a prodigiously talented trainwreck and Cormier is a hard-working, decent family man. Jones won their 1st fight handily and looked Cormier in the eye and told him his legacy would be as the guy who lost to Jones. It was deadly serious and a massive insult to a former olympian and previously-undefeated champion. When WWE ran a segment with Seth Rollins calling Chris Jericho "sparklecrotch" the following Monday, it pushed me away from wrestling and heavily into MMA for a few years. The starpower and match-making isn't what it was a few years ago, but I'll still go out of my way to see a major title fight or grudge match, which is something I can't say for any wrestling promotion except ROH at this point.

MLW - Went to a mania weekend show in 2019 and had a blast. I want to support the company, but the show just isn't that good and the talent turns over too quickly.

ROH - Still my favorite wrestling company after all these years. I got into ROH in 2006 and was a fanatical follower until 2011. I went to 8-10 live shows in that timeframe and still own a frankly embarrassingly large ROH DVD collection that includes all but a few missing shows from 2002-present. I loved the serious, sports-like presentation of ROH from the start, all the different styles that were represented on the shows, how hard everyone worked, and the awesome talent roster. There are way too many incredible matches/moments that still resonate with me to this day to list. I still fire up Danielson/KENTA when showing people what serious professional wrestling (i.e., not WWE) looks like and the AOTF debut when I want someone to see a truly gripping wrestling angle. I lost interest when the shows became about NJPW talent, but I've enjoyed everything since the relaunch this year. I picked up the best of 2019 10 disc set and have been pleasantly surprised at the quality of the matches.

[Wavelet Transform]

When I signed up for AEW I had hoped we'd be getting a product similar to NJPW and ROH except with big network production. What we have mostly gotten is WWE with marginally better matches.

Impact is that ex girlfriend whom the memory of is always better than the reality when you go back to her.

WWE is the culmination of every complaint I have about every other promotion on this list

Should have read these before posting and quoted - my thoughts exactly on all 3.

The Invasion was the end of me consuming WWE programming

I actually remember thinking it was cool at the time (I guess mainly because RVD was in WWE), but I now have a deep resentment towards Vince for how badly he ruined what could have been the greatest angle ever.

[NewROHFan2020]

HUGE.

I watch WWE,NJPW,AEW,NXT,ROH,IMPACT,MLW,NWA,UWN,AAA,MLW,GCW,ICW,BJW,FREEDOMS,NOAH,all indies on IWTV,etc,etc,etc, My wife used to hate it but now she likes that i watch so much. she knows exactly where i'am. In the basement instead of out at a bar. lol

I would consider you that as well. Like some of the others, I used to watch almost every WCW program in the late 90s and kept current with the WWF. I have a lot of wrestling knowledge, but I don’t think that makes me a “huge” fan CURRENTLY, because I don’t even watch the #1/2 promotions.

I was a huge fan, 25-20 years ago. Once WCW closed, I watched WWF for a bit, but it wasn’t the same, plus I started working then too. I only ordered 2 WWF PPVs, Invasion and No Way Out, which was for WCW reasons.

[NewROHFan2020]

When I signed up for AEW I had hoped we'd be getting a product similar to NJPW and ROH except with big network production. What we have mostly gotten is WWE with marginally better matches.

Impact is that ex girlfriend whom the memory of is always better than the reality when you go back to her.

WWE is the culmination of every complaint I have about every other promotion on this list

Should have read these before posting and quoted - my thoughts exactly on all 3.

The Invasion was the end of me consuming WWE programming

I actually remember thinking it was cool at the time (I guess mainly because RVD was in WWE), but I now have a deep resentment towards Vince for how badly he ruined what could have been the greatest angle ever.

It could have been the greatest angle ever, but it wasn’t going to be. Many top WCW stars weren’t there at the beginning. It’s kind of hard to have an “Invasion” when you’re using Chuck Palumbo and Kidman instead of Goldberg and Sting.

There’s no way Vince was going to let the WCW brand seem better or more successful than his. If I were “God” and didn’t have feelings towards one company or the other, I would have run the two brands totally separate, except for one a year, which would be “dream matches” at Wrestlemania. But again, without true star power, not much Vince could do with it.

[famicommander]

When I signed up for AEW I had hoped we'd be getting a product similar to NJPW and ROH except with big network production. What we have mostly gotten is WWE with marginally better matches.

Impact is that ex girlfriend whom the memory of is always better than the reality when you go back to her.

WWE is the culmination of every complaint I have about every other promotion on this list

Should have read these before posting and quoted - my thoughts exactly on all 3.

The Invasion was the end of me consuming WWE programming

I actually remember thinking it was cool at the time (I guess mainly because RVD was in WWE), but I now have a deep resentment towards Vince for how badly he ruined what could have been the greatest angle ever.

I was excited as hell for it until it actually happened.

What I thought I was gonna see:
Bill Goldberg's spear vs Rhino's gore
The Rock vs Sting
The Undertaker vs Hollywood Hogan

What I got:
DDP in some weird ass stalker storyline
Most of the biggest stars sitting at home
Current WWF stars being pushed as the face of the Invasion, ECW and WCW guys eating pins left and right

Luckily we got ROH, TNA, and MLW directly out of the ashes of ECW and WCW.

WCW: 1988-2001
ECW: 1993-2001

ROH and TNA/Impact: 2002-present
MLW: 2002-2004, 2017-present

As much as I loved WCW and ECW, the writing was on the wall for both promotions. I wouldn't trade ROH, Impact, and MLW for whatever WCW and ECW would look like if they'd somehow staved off death until the present.

[NewROHFan2020]

When I signed up for AEW I had hoped we'd be getting a product similar to NJPW and ROH except with big network production. What we have mostly gotten is WWE with marginally better matches.

Impact is that ex girlfriend whom the memory of is always better than the reality when you go back to her.

WWE is the culmination of every complaint I have about every other promotion on this list

Should have read these before posting and quoted - my thoughts exactly on all 3.

The Invasion was the end of me consuming WWE programming

I actually remember thinking it was cool at the time (I guess mainly because RVD was in WWE), but I now have a deep resentment towards Vince for how badly he ruined what could have been the greatest angle ever.

Luckily we got ROH, TNA, and MLW directly out of the ashes of ECW and WCW.

I don’t know about that. WCW was a legitimate #2 company and they were the clear #1 for awhile. AEW is only #2 by default currently. ECW was a clear #3 and was head and shoulders above any other non-WWF/WCW company. Now we have a bunch of number 3’s that are nowhere near as popular as ECW ever was. I don’t really call that “lucky”.

[famicommander]

Should have read these before posting and quoted - my thoughts exactly on all 3.


I actually remember thinking it was cool at the time (I guess mainly because RVD was in WWE), but I now have a deep resentment towards Vince for how badly he ruined what could have been the greatest angle ever.

Luckily we got ROH, TNA, and MLW directly out of the ashes of ECW and WCW.

I don’t know about that. WCW was a legitimate #2 company and they were the clear #1 for awhile. AEW is only #2 by default currently. ECW was a clear #3 and was head and shoulders above any other non-WWF/WCW company. Now we have a bunch of number 3’s that are nowhere near as popular as ECW ever was. I don’t really call that “lucky”.

Those two promotions were dead regardless.

The two choices here are
A dead ECW and WCW with TNA, ROH, and MLW to replace them
or
A dead ECW and WCW with no TNA, ROH, and MLW to replace them

[NewROHFan2020]

Luckily we got ROH, TNA, and MLW directly out of the ashes of ECW and WCW.

I don’t know about that. WCW was a legitimate #2 company and they were the clear #1 for awhile. AEW is only #2 by default currently. ECW was a clear #3 and was head and shoulders above any other non-WWF/WCW company. Now we have a bunch of number 3’s that are nowhere near as popular as ECW ever was. I don’t really call that “lucky”.

Those two promotions were dead regardless.

The two choices here are
A dead ECW and WCW with TNA, ROH, and MLW to replace them
or
A dead ECW and WCW with no TNA, ROH, and MLW to replace them

Someone else would have tried to come in and take those spots. Jeff Jarrett and Court Bauer probably weren’t the only ones with that idea. Some other company would have come along. Maybe they would be better, maybe not.

[famicommander]

I don’t know about that. WCW was a legitimate #2 company and they were the clear #1 for awhile. AEW is only #2 by default currently. ECW was a clear #3 and was head and shoulders above any other non-WWF/WCW company. Now we have a bunch of number 3’s that are nowhere near as popular as ECW ever was. I don’t really call that “lucky”.

Those two promotions were dead regardless.

The two choices here are
A dead ECW and WCW with TNA, ROH, and MLW to replace them
or
A dead ECW and WCW with no TNA, ROH, and MLW to replace them

Someone else would have tried to come in and take those spots. Jeff Jarrett and Court Bauer probably weren’t the only ones with that idea. Some other company would have come along. Maybe they would be better, maybe not.

Others tried. WWA and XWF were dead before the end of 2003.

[Reaper G]

I'd put myself in the "huge" category. If it's on my cable package -- Raw, Smackdown, NXT, AEW, Impact, ROH -- I'm watching it. That said, I rarely order PPVs or watch streams; I do have other interests, and my life can't revolve around just one thing.

Beyond viewing habits, I go to FSW and other local indies as much as possible, I'm a Lifetime member of the Cauliflower Alley Club, have amassed a decent library of wrestling histories and (auto)biographies, and Busted Open is my go-to morning radio show.

[NewROHFan2020]

I'd put myself in the "huge" category. If it's on my cable package -- Raw, Smackdown, NXT, AEW, Impact, ROH -- I'm watching it. That said, I rarely order PPVs or watch streams; I do have other interests, and my life can't revolve around just one thing.

Beyond viewing habits, I go to FSW and other local indies as much as possible, I'm a Lifetime member of the Cauliflower Alley Club, have amassed a decent library of wrestling histories and (auto)biographies, and Busted Open is my go-to morning radio show.

I would call anyone who watches mostly everything a huge fan. It’s hard to watch everything unless wrestling is someone’s only hobby.

I have only gone to one Indie show and that’s only because Rey Mysterio, Chaco Guerrero, Alberto El Patron, and others were on the card. I wouldn’t go see a bunch of nobodies wrestle.

[Reaper G]

I'd put myself in the "huge" category. If it's on my cable package -- Raw, Smackdown, NXT, AEW, Impact, ROH -- I'm watching it. That said, I rarely order PPVs or watch streams; I do have other interests, and my life can't revolve around just one thing.

Beyond viewing habits, I go to FSW and other local indies as much as possible, I'm a Lifetime member of the Cauliflower Alley Club, have amassed a decent library of wrestling histories and (auto)biographies, and Busted Open is my go-to morning radio show.

I would call anyone who watches mostly everything a huge fan. It’s hard to watch everything unless wrestling is someone’s only hobby.

I have only gone to one Indie show and that’s only because Rey Mysterio, Chaco Guerrero, Alberto El Patron, and others were on the card. I wouldn’t go see a bunch of nobodies wrestle.

I'd encourage you to go to an indie show to support young wrestlers who might someday become big stars. The FSW school produced Karrion Kross and Chris Bey, and many other big names have worked there -- sometimes passing through, sometimes regulars.

[NewROHFan2020]

I'd put myself in the "huge" category. If it's on my cable package -- Raw, Smackdown, NXT, AEW, Impact, ROH -- I'm watching it. That said, I rarely order PPVs or watch streams; I do have other interests, and my life can't revolve around just one thing.

Beyond viewing habits, I go to FSW and other local indies as much as possible, I'm a Lifetime member of the Cauliflower Alley Club, have amassed a decent library of wrestling histories and (auto)biographies, and Busted Open is my go-to morning radio show.

I would call anyone who watches mostly everything a huge fan. It’s hard to watch everything unless wrestling is someone’s only hobby.

I have only gone to one Indie show and that’s only because Rey Mysterio, Chaco Guerrero, Alberto El Patron, and others were on the card. I wouldn’t go see a bunch of nobodies wrestle.

I'd encourage you to go to an indie show to support young wrestlers who might someday become big stars. The FSW school produced Karrion Kross and Chris Bey, and many other big names have worked there -- sometimes passing through, sometimes regulars.

I live in an area where there isn’t many shows or if there is one, it’s mostly lucha libre. The one I am talked about in the post above, I saw 10 different wrestlers do the same 10 moves, over and over again.