Orange Cassidy: Is there money in funny?

The most controversial performer in professional wrestling will make his home in AEW.

When the lights went out during the tag team tournament match between the Best Friends and the Dark Order at AEW’s All Out pay per view, the crowd went silent. Wrestling crowds are educated that when the lights go out, a big surprise is coming.

When the arena floor was finally illuminated, the most controversial man in professional wrestling stood in the center of the ring, hands in pockets, nonchalantly announcing his arrival to the major leagues. With an expressionless, too-cool-for-school look on his face, he bounced off the ropes and hit the Order’s minions with a dive. His hands never left his pockets. The crowd cheered and laughed at the same time. Without saying a word, Orange Cassidy declared himself All Elite … or something.

Orange Cassidy is one of the most polarizing figures on the independent wrestling scene. No one questions his talent or ability, but his gimmick, a guy who “doesn’t care,” leaves fans divided. People either love or hate him. They are either in on the joke, or they don’t get it.

Cassidy, whose offense consists of intentionally weak-looking kicks and strikes, often with his hand in his pockets, leave both his opponent and new audiences confused. The joke being that Cassidy can turn it on at any time, but often doesn’t. On an indie scene where even long-tenured veterans struggle to achieve any sort of attention, Cassidy found his niche, which his fans love. To his detractors, he’s everything wrong with professional wrestling capsulated into a pair of acid-washed jeans and sunglasses.

The issue with Cassidy comes down to the role of comedy in pro wrestling. To the most ardent wrestling fans, comedy should play next to no role at all. To those fans, when AEW CEO Tony Kahn promised a “sports-focused” promotion where “wins and losses matter,” having a character like Cassidy cheapens a product that has the opportunity to stand out from the cartoonish aspects of the WWE.

However, New Japan Pro Wrestling, the promotion with the most serious, sports-like presentation, features Toru Yano, arguably the most gifted physical comedian in the wrestling business. Why are Yano’s antics revered, while the sillier aspects of the WWE are maligned?

The difference comes down to how comedy is presented in the promotion. In WWE, logic is often set aside to generate a reaction. Vince McMahon is a fan of rather sophomoric humor that usually involves bodily functions and food fighting. There’s very much a downward-punching element to humor in WWE. The comedic characters in that company are idiots to be laughed at. The audience is educated to mock these characters in a point-and-laugh game. Not really surprising from a guy who thinks the height of humor is pushing someone into a pool.

However, in New Japan, Toru Yano is a much different animal. Dubbed “the sublime master thief,” Yano plays a Shakespearian fool. He’s nowhere near the best wrestler, so he uses his humor to defuse and often confuse to his opponents. Yano acts like a goof, tossing DVDs and playing to the crowd, drawing their laughs, all while frustrating or annoying his rival.

Yano takes a lot of losses, but when he wins, it’s because he’s outwitted his opponents. His G1 wins over Tetsuya Naito and Jon Moxley were perfect examples of Yano’s strategy executed to perfection. Moxley’s post-match press conference lament of “I got Yanoed,” says it all. The crowd rallies behind Yano because they’re playing the game with him. They know the fool is actually a genius.

Whether AEW chooses to portray Cassidy as an idiot or subtle mastermind or something different remains to be seen. But the wrestling world will have their eyes on Freshly Squeezed when AEW premieres on TNT October 2.