Quick Links
The start of 2016 would see some pretty exciting news for WWE fans, with the rumored debuts of Shinsuke Nakamura, AJ Styles, Karl Anderson, and Doc Gallows, all being seen as breaking news following NJPW's annual Wrestle Kingdom event in January. Styles would debut in that year's Royal Rumble, with Nakamura arriving in NXT for a legendary bout against Sami Zayn. Following WrestleMania, Gallows and Anderson would finally arrive in the company as they would set aim for The Usos. Despite coming in with a ton of momentum and seeming like the next big tag team in WWE, Gallows and Anderson would repeatedly have their momentum cut out from underneath them during their time in WWE, before eventually being released in 2020. Since then, they have found themselves appearing in Impact Wrestling, AEW, and New Japan Pro Wrestling, though the team once beloved by fans has now become one of the more polarizing tag teams in pro wrestling.
Their First Year In Impact Hurt Them
Coming into Impact Wrestling in 2020 after being released by WWE, a number of talents would look to breakout for the promotion, with Deonna Purrazzo leading the charge and leaving any questions of whether she should have been a star behind. Stunning everyone with the best work of her career, Purrazzo did not look at moving to Impact as a demotion, but rather as a chance to show the world how great she was. Conversely, the first year of The Good Brothers' time in Impact Wrestling could be seen as the opposite, with both Gallows and Anderson feeling as if they were coasting for much of it.
Delivering less-than-stellar matches, phoning it in on the microphone, and just seemingly not caring about their work, The Good Brothers' time in Impact during 2020 and the early portion of 2021 would see them lose the support of fans. Upon working with AEW as a part of the Super Elite faction, Gallows and Anderson would finally appear to care about wrestling, with a number of big-time tag matches delivering for the Good Brothers alongside the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega.
Their Comedy Is Not For Everyone
Ignoring the in-ring skills of both Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows, something that has been a part of their characters for years is their comedy. It is arguably one of the more polarizing aspects of them, with the two using comedy to get their personalities across in a different way than just cutting standard promos. The issue with this is that their type of comedy is not often for everyone. At its worst point, was when the two were doing comedic sketches during their time in WWE, where they would be seen playing doctors while working in low-brow jokes in some genuinely cringe-inducing segments that will live on as some of the worst work of either man's career.
At its best, The Good Brothers managed to deliver some great PPV content with their Talk 'N Shop A Mania series of shows during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Regardless though, when trying to be seen as a serious tag team, using comedy so heavily just does not seem like the strongest idea to get over. When looking at fan reactions to The Good Brothers over the past several years, it should not be hard to see why they have had fans turn on them.
When Motivated, They Are Great
While many fans had seemingly lost interest in The Good Brothers heading into 2022, this year would mark a bit of a resurgence for the tag team, with Gallows and Anderson turning it on late into their time working with AEW, and carrying that over into Impact Wrestling. Delivering some of their best matches in years, The Good Brothers have thrived in 2022 after rejoining Bullet Club, with Anderson even winning singles gold in NJPW, currently holding the NEVER Openweight Championship.
Having found the motivation to care about wrestling again, The Good Brothers have begun to become the great team they once were. The only downside to this is that over the past several years, their lack of care and bad efforts have led to many fans already giving up and turning on them.