7 Biggest Complaints with WWE Right Now

Fans have walked a long road to get to the 2024 version of WWE where the company has found its voice again. At one time, this kind of evolution seemed impossible.

The first part of this century in WWE saw a steady decline in quality, leading to much online discourse about what needed to change.

Fans called for more varied action and stars, the return of the "cool" factor that made the Attitude Era special, and most importantly, a clearer respect for the talent who were doing everything in their power to make the show great.

This frustration even led to a birth of All Elite Wrestling as the first true alternative to WWE programming since WCW was bought out in 2001.

It was not until 2022 that fans truly began to see a new opportunity developing when Vince McMahon resigned from WWE.

Triple H stepped in, and the rest is history. The Paul Levesque Era in WWE may have begun at SummerSlam 2022, but it was officially declared at WrestleMania 40.

Business is booming. Creative is stronger than it has been in decades. The talent have expressed more satisfaction with the working conditions in WWE and their creative direction.

There is no doubt the company is in an upswing, but no product is perfect. It still has some clear creative and logistical issues that could hinder this new era sooner than later.

The following are the seven biggest complaints about WWE right now and opportunities to fix them to keep the product on course for the best era in company history.

Too Clean Presentation

The more things change, the more they stay the same. After building a reputation as the grittier product, WWE won the Monday Night War and decided to homogenize the shows to open up the product to a younger audience.

While WWE is no longer in the full PG Era, the presentation still has so many glossy edges that it's hard to trust that anything wild can happen.

One of the single greatest angles the company has run in recent years was The Rock's heel turn and subsequent attacks on Cody Rhodes ahead of WrestleMania 40.

The Final Boss became an unstoppable force who stood out from the crowd because he was not clean cut. He would swear openly. He promised and delivered bloody spectacles.

Rock's run up to The Show of Shows had the internet on fire in fascination over what he would do next.

WWE has not delivered an angle even close to this since.

Cody Rhodes has faced conventional opponents in solid title bouts at premium live events with little fanfare, and The Bloodline's presentation has hinted at wilder moments but delivered mostly familiar television.

Perhaps this is because The Rock was always the exception rather than the rule, backed up by reports from Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio that he was able to break rules no one else could due to his standing with TKO and the networks.

Those rules are a problem that could become a solution quickly. Every rule is made to be broken. Letting talent across the company break those rules at the right moment would set the standard that WWE is unpredictable again.

AEW has pulled in fans with a much more violent presentation that has been glossed up as well in recent years, but it is still further on an extreme WWE would never cross.

There is room for a happy medium. NXT has hinted more at this possibility than the main roster recently, but there will always be opportunities to push boundaries at the right moments with the right stories to deliver hotter angles.

Predictable Results

Alongside the glossy presentation, WWE is falling into a classic wrestling dilemma: How to consistently deliver great stories that also have fans questioning the possible results.

Predictability is not inherently a bad thing, as sometimes the right result is best for the long-term direction of the brand.

However, with so many stories developing at the same time, there is little reason that every premium live event cannot feature a few matches with results that are difficult to predict.

The problem lies in WWE's insistence on long title reigns across every championship and the importance of PLEs over television.

WrestleMania 40 saw a major changing of the guard where multiple record-breaking title reigns came to an end. Almost no one who holds a title in WWE today can afford to lose it soon.

However, a hot angle can sometimes trump title prestige. WWE did hot-shot the Women's World Championship from Becky Lynch to Liv Morgan recently, an angle that has had fans talking every week since Rhea Ripley vacated the belt.

SummerSlam is on the horizon with clear challengers set for the World Heavyweight Championship and WWE Women's Championship after Gunther won King of the Ring and Nia Jax won Queen of the Ring.

However, two months of action before SummerSlam should not be dismissed for the sake of the bigger show. This is a time to elevate new talent and test which stars will emerge as the next breakout WWE acts.

Titles don't even need to change hands, but surprise opportunities for rising hot stars like LA Knight, Tiffany Stratton and Bron Breakker could convince fans some just might.

Too Few Championship Defenses

One major issue that is making even PLE title matches predictable is a lack of championship defenses outside of the major shows.

While the belts may be defended often at house shows, the perception of a reign is based on what is actively televised.

Since he won the United States Championship in November 2023, Logan Paul has defended it twice.

In that same time, he has competed in Elimination Chamber for a World Heavyweight Championship opportunity and challenged Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.

Damian Priest has defended his World Heavyweight Championship once since WrestleMania 40 and will not defend it again until June 15 at Clash at the Castle.

Austin Theory and Grayson Waller have also defended just once since WrestleMania 40 and have no obvious title defense on the horizon.

Where are the fighting champions like Seth Rollins, who was always looking for another competitor to step up and was unafraid to put his gold on the line?

It is fine to have certain champions, especially heels, withhold title opportunities, but this does not work when most titleholders are not even following the 30-day defense rule.

Most titles should be defended at least once a month on television, making those shows more important.

Struggling Tag Team Divisions

Most of WWE's divisions have obvious substance. The singles divisions are loaded with enough talent to keep the main event and midcard fresh for a long time.

However, every WWE tag team division comes off as inconsequential. Both champions are entertaining but hardly come off as serious titleholders. Moreover, their only established challengers are the same few teams that have always been on top.

While teams such as The Creed Brothers and DIY have serious potential as fresh challengers, they seem to be waiting for stories to kick in that will make them relevant.

WWE women's tag champions Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill have serious credibility but no real threats as challengers.

The revolving door of the women's tag team division needs a solid foundation that still has not formed.

Hopefully, Shayna Baszler and Zoey Stark remain partners past their title defense while Chelsea Green and Piper Niven as well as Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn rebuild their credibility.

This is one area where WWE is already on track to improve, but the pieces are still out of place. It may be time to move a little faster with some stories to get people excited about the tag team divisions again.

Missing Roman Reigns

WWE is not the same without Roman Reigns on air.

No matter how good Cody Rhodes is as world champion for SmackDown and how much Solo Sikoa tries to replace The Tribal Chief , the top star in the company is obviously missing.

This will be eventually rectified, but the central problem is that WWE still hasn't clearly established the next top heel to take Reigns' place.

Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa are not nearly as effective as original Bloodline trio of Reigns, Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso.

AJ Styles and Logan Paul have both tried to step up, but they have not delivered on a level that has established them as more than filler challengers for Rhodes.

Raw is holding it down much better with Drew McIntyre and Gunther as the top heels, but the red brand has the opposite problem: There is no top babyface.

Sami Zayn and Jey Uso may hold the highest standing, but both have been relegated to popular midcard roles.

Knowing Reigns was going to be away a while, WWE may have taken the wrong steps in breaking up the rosters between Raw and SmackDown.

This has left WWE with a hole at the top of the card that will not be filled until The Tribal Chief returns.

Inability to Pivot Storytelling to Capitalize on Popular Angles

WWE has always struggled to pivot at the correct moments to respond to fan reactions. This is a tough ask for any wrestling promoter, but every era of the company has been riddled with missed opportunities.

While WWE did realize it was right to move to Cody Rhodes facing Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 40, it wasn't ready to capitalize on the growing popularity of LA Knight, Jey Uso or Chad Gable.

Knight has done almost nothing since fighting Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel in November 2023 despite an easy story to tell with Logan Paul that has been put on hold.

Jey has struggled to escape the shadow of The Bloodline story, but WWE had opportunities to make him a champion, either winning the Intercontinental Championship, World Heavyweight Championship or King of the Ring. He just keeps losing.

While Gable has thrived since his heel turn, he might have been even more popular after toppling Gunther as champion.

Triple H has shown a strong booking sense with the major stories in WWE, keeping them consistent across years of build.

To keep that consistency, he likely develops a drawn-out plan for the key championships months in advance. That is a great idea on paper but could make adjusting to organic moments even more difficult.

The current roster may be the hottest it has ever been, but if WWE doesn't find ways to capitalize on the popularity of key stars, that popularity will wane.

Lack of Apparent Long-Term Angles

The biggest long-term angle in WWE is The Bloodline story. It has evolved over time with highs and lows.

The story is rebuilding at the moment, and it's obvious that the rest of the major angles in WWE cannot match up.

Rhodes' title reign could become a major epic with time, but other than the eventual return of The Rock, there is no clear challenger looming for him.

The World Heavyweight Championship scene is a mess of names from Damian Priest and Gunther to Drew McIntyre and CM Punk. It's difficult to find a cohesive angle behind it all.

The rest of the champions are working from PLE to PLE as is much of the rest of the roster. The most layered storyline may be Chad Gable's Alpha Academy drama, but that angle might be reaching its conclusion rather than just getting good.

Especially in the women's division, WWE needs to start developing angles that can keep talent relevant for the long haul. Liv Morgan may be able to slot in with The Judgment Day, but what is the plan for Bayley, Bianca Belair or Jade Cargill?

It is crucial for young talent on the rise to develop angles. Tiffany Stratton, Carmelo Hayes and Ilja Dragunov had much clearer stories and momentum in NXT and have a limited window left to carry that popularity forward.

The only WWE angles that have legs currently are stable-driven like The Judgment Day or Latino World Order, but those groups lack compelling direction at the moment with key players out injured.

Triple H has shown a propensity for patient booking, so hopefully the vision is just on the horizon for the next big stories.