Being The Elite is the future of pro wrestling storytelling
It's no secret that The Young Bucks are one of the hottest tag teams in wrestling. With a cult following in Ring of Honor transcending over to New Japan Pro Wrestling, where they've won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team championships seven times.
One of the best teams to have never set foot in the WWE, The Young Bucks have been marketing gurus and merchandise machines. They have the best selling T-shirts on Pro Wrestling Tees and have made their living off of busting their ass online. The recent success of their YouTube channel, "Being the Elite" showcases the team's lives touring the world with ROH and NJPW as the Bullet Club grows into even more of a global phenomenon.
Accompanied with its own unique storylines and skits, The Young Bucks and the Bullet Club have found a new way to define storytelling in the modern era of pro wrestling. Developments on the rift in the Bullet Club have primarily taken place off-screen and on laptop screens instead.
The most recent struggle within the Bullet Club is the tug-of-war for the leadership of the faction between Cody and Kenny Omega. While we've seen conflicts play out on ROH and NJPW television, such as Cody coming down to throw in the towel for Kenny Omega in his IWGP Heavyweight Championship rematch against Kazuchika Okada at Dominion 2017 and Kenny Omega saving Kota Ibushi from an attack by Cody and Hangman Page at New Year's Dash 2018. A lot of the behind the scenes look at the inner workings of the Bullet Club are shown on Being the Elite.
The aftermath of Cody attacking Kenny Omega at New Beginning 2018 was shown on Being the Elite, where Cody coined the phrase "Bullet Club is fine." The series has highlighted the tension in the group, where the fans are split between rooting for Team Kenny and Team Cody.
We haven't seen storytelling in this raw of a form outside of wrestling television for a long time, if ever before. The Young Bucks keep innovating the way storytelling is told in the modern era of wrestling, from their controversial in-ring style to their even less conventional YouTube series.
It's likely we'll see more drama and tension evolve as the series reaches its 100th episode, set to take place right around Wrestlemania weekend, where Cody and Kenny Omega will square off at Supercard of Honor XII.
Being the Elite has me on the edge of my seat each and every week, and as the implosion of the Bullet Club seems more likely week by week, it is becoming the must-watch way for storytelling in pro wrestling.
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