AEW Called Out for Dropping Storylines and Booking Matches with No Hype

AEW’s approach to storytelling is coming under fire once again—this time for abandoning emotional angles and relying too heavily on matches that lack buildup.

On the July 28, 2025 episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, longtime wrestling analyst Dave Meltzer didn’t mince words about what he sees as a major flaw in the company’s creative direction.

Meltzer pointed to the recent Christian Cage and Nick Wayne angle, where AEW teased a dramatic fallout… only to let it fizzle out without a match or payoff. He suggested the company had no good outcome, so they simply dropped it.

“They shot that. You know, I think the thing probably is, he doesn’t want to beat Nick and he doesn’t want to beat Christian. So we just don’t do the match.”

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Bryan Alvarez chimed in earlier, frustrated that AEW didn’t even promote the match after setting it up on TV.

“They shot an angle here, seemingly for a tag match, but they didn’t announce the match. What is the point of shooting an angle if you’re not going to use it to promote when the match is going to be? Why even bother doing angles then?”

Beyond just one feud, Meltzer said the company’s broader booking style is missing the mark. In his words, AEW puts on strong matches—but with no story behind them, they don’t matter.

“The entire business is not about wrestling. It’s about hype. And yes, anything that you announce an hour before — yeah, it might make for a good TV show and it might make for great social engagement — but it’s not going to get anybody excited.”

He continued by warning that great matches aren’t enough to build a loyal weekly audience:

“You want people excited for days ahead to watch your show. You’ve got to hype something. Just throwing something in there with none of that? I mean, great, we’ll get a good match… but it doesn’t mean anything.”

Meltzer wrapped up by making it clear that good wrestling alone can’t carry a company anymore—not in a landscape where fans can find great in-ring action just about anywhere.

“Good matches alone do not make a wrestling company, especially in this day and age when there’s so much good wrestling going on.”

With AEW continuing to load up cards with elite matchups but often skipping the buildup, the criticism may only grow louder if those stories keep falling through the cracks.

Please credit Ringside News if you use the above transcript in your publication.