Eras seemed to focus on different things. Hogan was larger than life, cooled down during new gen focusing more on workrate, Attitude a return to what made it guud, brand split was attitude lite with workrate. After that they got Cena involved and he was that larger than life central figure. Post Cena the Shield was focusing on ringwork with finisher kickout fests that made indies/puro a thing on the internet. What does wrestling do today that makes it worth paying attention to? Is all this "boom" talk merely on the bloodline story? Is that the draw today, good writing? Excellent matches? Cody cleared a million in merch over WM so clearly they're doing something right. Is it the ringwork? Is it the showmanship (promos and non wrestling)? Social media connection? If it's a new era, what is it bringing to THE TABLE? (Don't you fookin' say it either)

New era is all about personality. All about people connecting with the personality of wrestlers more than moves or characters. Cody is the face of this. He is not the biggest guy, the toughest guy, the most charismatic guy or most entertaining guy, but like his pops, he is the everyman that people just connect with. Like him or not, Cody will define this era.  Sami was the same thing really.

During the pandemic WWE started to focus on long-term storytelling and three-dimensional personalities. The seeds were sown and now we are bearing the fruits.

The Bloodline storyline has so many layers, from its beginning with Roman Reigns and Jey Uso, to Sami Zayn's involvement and beyond. Huge moments were set up and paid off. Its tentacles extended to the rest of the roster - a guy like Drew McIntyre was never directly involved in the Bloodline angle but his match with Roman Reigns at Clash at the Castle has meaning to this day. It's fair to say WWE has never told a story that long ambitious in its history. You could even trace the story further back to the moment Seth Rollins backstabbed Roman Reigns in The Shield.

Combine the storytelling with deep character work and it's a recipe for a compelling product which brings in the fans.

If WWE can extend this philosophy to the undercard then it's going to be the best wrestling product on the planet by a long way. And we're seeing that start to happen, for example the Sami Zayn/Chad Gable/Gunther storyline.