It’s official: Tony Khan jumped the Shark

I went into AEW Dynamite last night with an open mind on behalf of all the AEW fans who have called me out. After being told to “give it a chance” “enjoy all wrestling” and “Don’t be a mark”, I tuned in last night with an open mind and hopes that I was wrong. That AEW was in the process of turning things around and that AEW was ready for a rebound.

And after two hours… I am still not sure about the shit show that has followed, and I am just floored.

In the main event segment last night, instead of Swerve Strickland (their 1st Black World Champion {Their words, not mine}) headlining the segment, it was Jack Perry meeting with Tony Khan. And what followed was not just unbelievable but comical in Jack Perry and the Young Bucks laying out Khan and then everyone going to the ring to check on him. .

That’s right you stupid AEW fans… Tony lied again when he said he would “never be an onscreen character”.

Do you feel stupid yet for believing him? Are you upset that the main event was all about him and the EVP’s?

Has it sunk in that for all the crap that Tony has given about Vince and Bischoff… HE HAS DONE THE SAME THING

After two hours of watching a show that at times felt like I was watching Teen Titans Go, I came away just feeling pity for the entire AEW roster. Because after that show, it’s now proof that CM Punk was right about his assessment of AEW.

This company is not about making a profit but about one guy’s passion about being in pro wrestling.

First, let’s review the whole performance of Tony and just laugh at how bad it is. For one, he is not an actor, and it shows in just taking the punch and how he reacted. Not only did he forget to grab his stomach, but he then fell flat on his back, then rolled over… THEN GRABBED HIS STOMACH!

The whole thing was so bad it was if you hire a performance actor who was on drugs and forgot what to do.

Then as he is about to take what can only be described as one of the worst looking piledrivers since Kane on Linda McMahon, Tony lays there as everyone just mulls about. It would have been funny if not for just the sheer stupidity of the whole thing in the first place.

The whole start of this “angle” was one CM Punk was fired for the “brawl” and Tony feared for his life. So now after 8 months of just not addressing this they go to full tilt and incorporate the boss into a physical angle?

This is what everyone in AEW complained about with the WWE and WCW.

One of the biggest gripes in pro wrestling is the “management interference” where we see people in power end up in the ring. From the McMahon family, Eric Bischoff, Vince Russo and even Dixie Carter; they all ended up getting physical in the ring.

It’s what the Steamy Ray’s, Tw5L and the rest of the AEW defenders would crow about. They even said that Tony would never do that; he was above getting in the ring. That he didn’t want to take away from his wrestlers and that it was all about the wrestlers.

But nope. You were all wrong and he just proved that last night by putting himself into the ring to be part of their “hot angle”.

Meanwhile as all this is going on, Swerve was involved in basically a throwaway match “with no promo, no build and a short competitive match with a ROH champion, Kyle Fletcher.

The guy who Tony kept propping up as the company’s first “Black World Champion” felt more like a TV Champion or TBS champion rather than the face of the company. Instead of how Cody Rhodes, Moose or Damian Priest was presented, Swerve felt like a transitional champion in the making.

He wasn’t even in the main opening segment or the last segment which is what makes it baffling.

Meanwhile Chris Jericho, the guy that nobody wants on TV right now, is once again getting a new stable it appears. “The Learning Tree” bragged about educating Hook and then says he will educate young talent if they want his help. The young talent that came out was none other than Big Bill Morrissey.

The same Big Bill who was formerly a AEW World Tag Team champion and WWE and Impact main eventer. Not a younger star who in theory could have used this rub but another big semi main event caliber wrestler.

It’s another example of Tony continuing to not just push his guys but go back to the well despite it being dry. This might be the 3rd stable Jericho has had in AEW starting with the Inner Circle then the Jericho Appreciation Society to The Learning Tree.

All for a guy who right now even AEW defenders want to go away for a bit. Even if it’s for a few months, just get off TV and let fans miss him instead of dreading seeing him.

But instead, because he is close with Tony, he is getting another stable, a bigger push and has buried a younger wrestler.

Watching AEW last night gave me vibes from when The Authority was running raw. Way too many of the favorite kids (Ospreay, Mercedes, Young Bucks, Jericho) and everyone else feel like they are there for the sake of being there.

But the Main Event is just the pièce de résistance of this debacle.

At least with Vince McMahone, he looked the part and was forced into the role quickly after the Montreal Screw Job. Yes, it dragged on and on like Donkey Kong, but Vince was a big sonofabitch who could kick your ass.

Tony Khan looks like the guy who does your taxes every year that cowers under the sight of violence.

And the main benefactors of this are once again the Elite who are part of their management.

Imagine right now being Ricky Starks, Wardlow or any non-Tony Khan favorite or WWE veteran. You signed with AEW for money, a chance to grow and the freedom to be in a WWE alternative.

Don’t want to deal with Vince McMahon and Triple H being overbearing and sticking their noses in hot angles? Come to AEW and work with an owner that wasn’t going to be on TV and wanted it to be “All about wrestling”.

That was what was hammered into my head by all the AEW fans and wrestling media.

Instead, Tony has proven that it was all bullshit and that he is not going to change at all. Last night showed that things are going down rather than up.

The Young Bucks being in the main event segment once again showed that they are putting themselves ahead of the roster. They wanted CM Punk gone and they got their wish after the fallout from Wembley Brawl In. They wanted Jack Perry to get a big push and they had him be the guy who assaults Tony Khan and is part of the new Elite.

What bothers AEW critics the most is that we warned people this was happening. That Tony Khan was continuing to make the same mistakes over and over again. That product in the ring is suffering due to older acts getting more time over younger wrestlers. That even when they elevate younger talent, they rarely follow through.

But the latest episode of AEW Dynamite was the final “Jump the Shark” moment as Tony became an onscreen character and took awful looking bumps.

Not awful in that it looked bad but awful in that it just looked horrible and phony.

At this point, I am done giving AEW a chance or listening to AEW fans talk about how wrong I am. I tried to wait for AEW to improve and grow but this company continues to do the same things over and over.

I once said that Tony was a lot like Herb Abrams, the failed promoter of the UWF.

I was mocked and told that I was completely wrong, and that Tony was never going to get in the ring. That I was a lot more like Jim Cornette and Eric Bischoff than I cared to admit with being a hater.

To that I say… you’re right. I tried to be a fanboy of AEW but at this point I am done expecting this company to turn around as long as Tony and the Young Bucks are in charge.

Last night was the night AEW jumped the Shark and became more “Sports Entertainment” than wrestling.

At this point you have to wonder if the end is near and WBD starts thinking about replacing AEW with actual Shark shows.

To listen to more Fighters/Boxers/Sports Reporters interviews and more check out www.lastcallpodcast.com or follow me on Twitter.com/LastCallwChrisC.