Spoiler reports from AEW's Rampage taping in Chicago on Weds., June 21 indicated that the segment involving The Acclaimed and QTV was booed so loudly it would likely have to be edited so television viewers could understand what was going on.
Whatever they did worked pretty well. As it aired on TNT last night (June 23), it's clear the Wintrust Arena crowd didn't want to hear QTV's Harley Cameron talk, and they really didn't want to hear her rap. We can debate whether it's "good heat" or "go away heat" or even "misogynist heat", but the scene gets the key takeaways across.
Max Caster, Anthony Bowens & Billy Gunn are feuding with QT Marshall's crew, and that crew now includes John Morrison of WWE/Impact/MLW/AAA/Lucha Underground fame. For however long he's around in AEW this time, he's going by Johnny TV.
A not-as-key-to-the-story-but-quite-cool takeaway from the segment? A gag about Cameron hitting on Bowens leading to a joyful, supportive "He's gay" chant from AEW fans.
If ya told me years ago, I’d have an arena chanting HE’S GAY at me in the most POSITIVE of ways, I’d say you’re crazy.
— Anthony Bowens (@Bowens_Official) June 24, 2023
It’s pretty cool to see how far we’ve come. Still more work to do. Happy Pride #AEWRampage pic.twitter.com/CgBM8QJWWn
Us wrestling fans aren't all bad.
In addition to the crowd, a lot of credit for a moment like this goes to folks like Bowens for their presence in the space, advocacy for LGBTQ people & causes, and unwillingness to let their sexuality or identity be used for laughs or the kinds of queer panic angles wrestling's been known for in the past. We should also tip our caps to allies like CM Punk, Kenny Omega and numerous others who work in almost every promotion. We'll even give props to many of those promotions, including AEW, WWE, and Impact who seem to have gone ahead with their Pride month marketing plans despite what's happened to companies like Target this month.
Pleasant as it is, it's not the focal point of the segment. So... what do we think about Johnny TV?
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