Adam Copeland praises AEW's shift to storyline emphasis

Since its inception in 2019, AEW has always been a sports-based wrestling promotion. Their stories and narratives were told in the ring, and dream matches were the primary draw to the promotion. For the first two or three years, that methodology helped grow the company exponentially. However, as the dream matches dried up and the in-ring stories stagnated, AEW started losing viewers , both live and on television.

A long-time knock on Tony Khan's company has been its limited storytelling. AEW has struggled to build sustainable storylines that can grow interest in the company and develop stars, both baby faces and heels. Yet, in February, Khan moved to sign former WWE senior writer Jennifer Pepperman . And now, the company is starting to see and feel the benefit of that decision.

AEW has enjoyed some stellar storytelling over the last month or two. The feuds between Will Ospreay and MJF and Daniel Garcia and MJF have both had their moments, leading to headline matches at back-to-back pay-per-views. Pepperman's involvement took the Swerve Strickland and Hangman Adam Page story to new heights. Of course, other narratives have begun bubbling on recent shows, too.

During a recent interview with AMNY, WWE Hall of Famer Adam Copeland, who is currently absent from AEW due to a foot injury, praised the company's switch to a storyline-focused approach.

“It feels like we’re getting more storyline emphasis because dream matches can only happen so often, and how sustainable is it? Story is always sustainable," Copeland said. "Good story can last and last and last, and then you can always revisit it. And I look at the Hangman/Swerve story and I’ve just loved watching the slow progression.”

With hot stories comes fan interest. It's the best way to draw new eyes onto the product and usher in a new wave of casual fans. AEW's days of focusing on a niche crowd appear to be drawing to a close. The company's growth has ensured it must begin catering to the mainstream.

It will be interesting to see how Khan navigates the new emphasis on storylines while ensuring his brand is different from what WWE offers. Still, if the production at both All-Out and All-In is anything to go by, it would appear Khan and AEW's creative team have found a good balance.