AEW: Well, what wasn’t a ‘boom’ for Feb. 26, 2020?

Dud: reinforcing patriarchy, misogyny, and women’s gender/sex roles

The above screenshot made me laugh as we started the main event segment. However, not so much this next video:

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Why are there “ring girls” for the weigh-in? I know this is still done in prizefighting, but Invicta FC (all women’s promotion) had a ring boy in Elias Theodorou. What was their reason for being there other than to be scantily clad in skin-tight clothes (remember, they’re NOT presented as wrestlers)?

This ties back to AEW having bikini-clad models for their “Bash at the Beach” themed episode where they just sat in a chair. Again, why?

I am NOT against women in wrestling or making money; I am against the inequitable portrayal of women (equity and equality are two different things). If we’re not going to have ring boys or speedo-clad male models just sitting pretty doing nothing but being eye candy, then the opposite should be unacceptable.

If, however, there are scantily-clad models spanning the gender and sexual spectrum, then this wouldn’t be as big of an issue.

Why is this so bad? If you only see women in these roles in wrestling and not men, it still signals that men think the ideal role for women is to be eye candy for men. It signals that women should be comfortable with being sexualized and seen only through the prism of attractiveness. Not only is this oppressive, it reinforces patriarchal power.

On the positive side, this has only happened twice. On the negative side, this has happened twice. I would suggest either scrapping having models altogether, or alternate the eye candy between genders/sexualities.

After all, even if your audience is overwhelmingly male, it is highly unlikely that 100 percent of those male fans are heterosexual, right? Wouldn’t the LGBTIQ+ identifying people also want some eye candy to look at (beyond the wrestlers competing in tights, of course)?

Boom: even their comedy segments are hitting all the right notes

Orange Cassidy can GO in the ring:

Sure, it might take him time to build up to being serious, but once he becomes serious (or “tries” as Trent reminded us), watch out.

I say all that so I can leave you with a smile on your face:

Freshly Squeezed and Freshly Schiavone (maybe Freshly Brewed with his barista experience?), never change.

See you this weekend for the “smack” and “downs” of the aptly named SmackDown!