Written by: Kevin Berge (All Images Courtesy of: WWE.com)

There was once a time where I eagerly awaited Extreme Rules. It was an event that actually had a clear gimmick and usually delivered with strong matches. This year, I barely kept my head up especially with so much help happening on the same weekend. I was more interested in watching the G1 Climax.

While I was happy to watch Fyter Fest and the G1 has started strong, I underestimated WWE. I forgot for just a moment just how much talent the company has. Sometimes, WWE just needs to get out of the way and let the wrestlers wrestle.

That's what they did for the most part, and the momentum was set for SummerSlam with only a few hiccups along the way.

Written by: Kevin Berge (Image Courtesy of: AEW photographer Lee South)

July 13-14 was a stacked weekend of wrestling. Everyone had something to deliver, and All Elite Wrestling looked to deliver in only its third big show. While ostensibly a major event for the company, the card though came in feeling sadly lackluster.

Some of this may have come from the lack of time from Fyter Fest. This charity event was set only two weeks after the last show. However, both secondary AEW events have lacked a strong build.

The biggest issue may simply be inexperience and missing a TV spotlight. AEW is trying to find its focus, and that has led to more introductions than rivalry builders.

Written by: Kevin Berge (All Images Courtesy of: WWE.com)

All good things in WWE last one week. After a big hubbub over Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff taking over Monday Night Raw and SmackDown Live, the following week went about as flat as possible.

To be fair, there's supposedly still a gradual change of power on both shows, but Raw sets a decent bar to be jumped, and this week the show started under that bar and sank straight down.

For those paying attention, this weekend will be a huge pair of nights of wrestling including Extreme Rules, and I wouldn't blame anyone for completely skipping the WWE show at the end. It's pretty sad that a card featuring Kofi Kingston vs. Samoa Joe, Ricochet vs. AJ Styles, The Revival vs. The Usos, and more feels so underwhelming.

Written by: Kevin Berge (All Images Courtesy of: WWE.com)

It's a new era in wrestling, and it's actually a return to the Attitude Era. Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff are back in wrestling, leading Monday Night Raw and SmackDown Live. While their effect may be felt gradually, their introduction has led to some immediate changes.

One: WWE is down playing coy. Wrestlers are swearing, flipping the bird, and probably bleeding more often soon as well. Two: We might be getting better at actually using talent. I know it's a bold hope, but there were a few hints this week that it could get better.

Three: Slowly but surely, things are going to start happening in WWE again. That means angle that mean more than just staredowns and generic brawls. Stories are going to develop week to week, making Raw and SmackDown worth watching more often.

All of this may be false hope, but I have this vague belief that it could get better. It could also get a lot worse. It's not like Heyman and Bischoff are paragons of storytelling excellence. Just making things more edgy isn't a recipe for success.

Written by: Kevin Berge

After watching Double or Nothing and discussing its impact, I consider how I wanted to cover All Elite Wrestling. I don't want to bog myself down by covering all the professional wrestling I watch, but I do want to keep the discussion focused on the alternative promotion.

While the jury is still out on what impact AEW will have on the business, it has the potential to make an important impact on the way we all discuss professional wrestling. For that reason, I'm going to try covering it a number of ways.

Until the TV show starts airing, I am going to return to an old familiar format by covering the major events and the matches that define them. Fyter Fest aired on Saturday, and it was free (in the US), so I thought I'd give my overall thoughts on AEW's second show.