History YMMV / JohnnyGargano

* ArcFatigue: His NXT feud with Wrestling/TomassoCiampa. Ciampa turned on Gargano in May 2017, and the feud didn't end until April 2020, in large part because of injuries.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: defrebel’s rework of "Rebel Heart" that debuted in November 2022, entitled "Bet On Yourself". Fans of the original version of the song don’t like the new (male) vocalist or reworked instrumental work, and consider it a change made for the sake of change.

** After Ciampa's betrayal, he switched to a vocal version of "From the Heart", called [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrUm_O8xMA0 "Rebel Heart"]], which wouldn't sound out of place in an anime opening. It's especially notable as one of the few themes with female vocals thats used by a male wrestler (probably the first since Christian abandoned using Waterproof Blonde's "Just Close Your Eyes" upon his departure from WWE in 2005). The theme returns at ''NXT [=WarGames=] 2021'', probably for one last time in an NXT ring. Returns on the main roster in 2022 for his unannounced return much to the fans' joy.

* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: In regards of the above, Gargano bounced back fairly quickly, since being charismatic, good in the ring, and devoted to the wrestling business makes it hard for someone to stay a Scrappy. He was already gaining acceptance due to being pretty solid in the ring. Then he suffered a back injury and completely won the fans over with his devotion to wrestling and having good matches despite being in incredible pain. It almost reached the point of the fans who hadn't liked Gargano going MyGodWhatHaveIDone.

** Gargano's facial expressions during his second Heel run in NXT have become this. Ironically, Wrestling/JimCornette has accused this of being a ForcedMeme, claiming that it's a response to him calling him "Johnny Same-face."

** "Speaking of 'Not Good,' it's Johnny Gargano!"[[note]][[https://youtu.be/QtRLbbkDLy8?t=361 This]] Website/{{Botchamania}} clip of Johnny Gargano botching a kick from the apron. Followed by a spliced version of Jimmy Smith announcing the match between Gargano and Otis was next. Gargano's detractors were amused by this edit to the point where, as Smith was fired before the following ''RAW'' and Gargano is considered one of Wrestling/TripleH's favorites, they joked that Smith was fired for "burying" Gargano.[[/note]]

** "Speaking of 'Not Good,' it's Johnny Gargano!"[[note]][[https://youtu.be/QtRLbbkDLy8?t=361 This]] Website/{{Botchamania}} clip of Johnny Gargano botching a kick from the apron. Followed by a spliced version of Jimmy Smith announcing the match between Gargano and Otis was next. Gargano's detractors were amused by this edit to the point where, as Smith was fired before the following ''RAW'' and Gargano is considered one of Wrestling/TripleH's favorite, they joke that Smith was fired for "burying" Gargano.[[/note]]

** Gargano's facial expressions during his second Heel run i NXT have become this. Ironically, Wrestling/JimCornette has accused this of being a ForcedMeme, claiming that it's a response to him calling him "Johnny Same-face."
** "Speaking of 'Not Good,' it's Johnny Gargano!"[[note]][[https://youtu.be/QtRLbbkDLy8?t=361 This]] [[Website/Botchamania Botchamania]] clip of Johnny Gargano botching a kick from the apron. Followed by a spliced version of Jimmy Smith announcing the match between Gargano and Otis was next.[[/note]]

* HilariousInHindsight: Johnny's promo to Wrestling/TheBar on ''Wrestling/WWESmackDown'' before teaming with Ciampa, [[MemeticMutation modifying]] their CatchPhrase: "We don't just set the bar, we BREAK the bar!" Whether Johnny was talking about beating the Bar or not, one month later at ''NXT [=TakeOver:=] New York'', he won the NXT Championship by defeating Wrestling/AdamCole in a 2-out-of-3 falls match that was rated [[BrokeTheRatingScale 5.5 stars]] by Dave Meltzer. So when it comes to high quality matches in WWE, Johnny Gargano doesn't just set the bar, he broke the bar!

* RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap: In regards of the above, Gargano bounced back fairly quickly, since being charismatic, good in the ring, and devoted to the wrestling business makes it hard for someone to stay a Scrappy. He was already gaining acceptance due to being pretty solid in the ring. Then he suffered a back injury and completely won the fans over with his devotion to wrestling and having good matches despite being in incredible pain. It almost reached the point of the fans who hadn't liked Gargano going MyGodWhatHaveIDone.
* WhatAnIdiot:
** July 25, 2018. Wrestling/AleisterBlack defends the NXT Championship against Wrestling/TommasoCiampa. Wrestling/JohnnyGargano, who has been suffering from a HeroicBSOD since his loss to his EvilFormerFriend at ''NXT [=TakeOver=]: Chicago II'', does not want Ciampa to win the championship.\\
'''You'd Expect:''' Johnny stays out of the match. Aleister Black is undefeated in singles competition so he has a good chance of beating Ciampa. Even ''Aleister himself'' told Johnny to mind his own business.\\
'''Instead:''' He gets involved in the match, causing him to inadvertently take out Aleister. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Paving the way for Ciampa to both end his undefeated streak and win the championship]].
** Johnny admits that he screwed up and caused Ciampa to become champion and vows to make it right. In the following week, Ciampa brags about his victory, which causes Aleister to come out.\\
'''You'd Expect:''' Johnny to stay out of it. Seeing that he's already caused enough damage already, he wouldn't want to risk making things worse.\\
'''Instead:''' He runs out past Aleister to attack Ciampa, even taunting his EvilFormerFriend that the only reason he was champion was because of his screw up. Right in front of the guy who lost because of said screw up.\\
'''The Result:''' Aleister takes out Johnny with a [[FinishingMove Black Mass]] in retaliation for his recklessness as even some of the fans turn against him, chanting "[[LaserGuidedKarma YOU DESERVE IT]]" at him.
----

** After Ciampa's betrayal, he switched to a vocal version of "From the Heart", called [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrUm_O8xMA0 "Rebel Heart"]], which wouldn't sound out of place in an anime opening. It's especially notable as one of the few themes with female vocals thats used by a male wrestler (probably the first since Christian abandoned using Waterproof Blonde's "Just Close Your Eyes" upon his departure from WWE in 2005). The theme returns at ''NXT [=WarGames=] 2021'', probably for one last time in an NXT ring.

** After Ciampa's betrayal, he switched to a vocal version of "From the Heart", called [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrUm_O8xMA0 "Rebel Heart"]], which wouldn't sound out of place in an anime opening. It's especially notable as one of the few themes with female vocals thats used by a male wrestler (probably the first since Christian abandoned using Waterproof Blonde's "Just Close Your Eyes" upon his departure from WWE in 2005). The theme returns at NXT [=WarGames=], probably for one last time in an NXT ring.
** His theme after his 2nd heel turn in NXT titled "Comin Back For You." Its lyrics are gritty and aggressive, and emphasize Johnny's new mantra of All Heart No Soul, and how he just wants to do things his way, The Johnny Gargano Way.

* HoYay: #DIY had a lot of this, to the point that Wrestling/ChuckTaylor lamented their breakup as it made his list of fifty ways they had sexual chemistry together pointless. Then again... (see FoeYay above)

* FoeYay: On Gargano's part, Ciampa meant so much to him that anything having to do with #DIY had become a TraumaButton for him. After Ciampa returned, the subtext only doubled, especially after [[spoiler:Ciampa attacked him at the end of ''Philadelphia'' and later cost Gargano his NXT career]], with Gargano ''stalking'' Ciampa, wearing him down until he accepted a match against him. Even the match itself had a lot of this, filled with so much emotion that it was borderline intimate, with many viewers feeling as if they were voyeurs watching something so personal.

** After Ciampa's betrayal, he switched to a vocal version of "From the Heart", called [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrUm_O8xMA0 "Rebel Heart"]], which wouldn't sound out of place in an anime opening. It's especially notable as one of the few themes with female vocals thats used by a male wrestler (probably the first since Christian abandoned using Waterproof Blonde's "Just Close Your Eyes" upon his departure from WWE in 2005).

** The talk about Johnny being cursed after losing his title to Leon Ruff, takes on new harshness given how fast Gargano's star has fallen since NXT started airing on TV after years of streaming only. Being branded ratings poison with what should have been the climax of his career (his feud with Ciampa) being roundly rejected by fans who prefer AEW's soap opera antics, upstaged by a rebranded Sam Shaw of TNA Impact infamy, declared so boring and forgettable that you are branded "Johnny Sameface" by Wrestling/JimCornette (which caught on with some of the fans), and ordered to start playing down your wrestling skills and acting like a boorish diva-like clown because "that's what fans want!".

** The talk about Johnny being cursed after losing his title to Leon Ruff, takes on new harshness given how fast Gargano's star has fallen since NXT started airing on TV after years of streaming only. Being branded ratings poison with what should have been the climax of his career (his feud with Ciampa) being roundly rejected by fans who prefer AEW's soap opera antics, upstaged by a rebranded Sam Shaw of TNA Impact infamy, declared so boring and forgettable that you are branded "Johnny Sameface" by Wrestling/JimCornette and fans, and ordered to start playing down your wrestling skills and acting like a boorish diva-like clown because "that's what fans want!".

** The talk about Johnny being cursed after losing his title to Leon Ruff, takes on new harshness given how fast Gargano's star has fallen since NXT started airing on TV after years of streaming only. Being branded ratings poison with what should have been the climax of his career (his feud with Ciampa) being roundly rejected by fans who prefer AEW's soap opera antics, upstaged by a rebranded Sam Shaw of TNA Impact infamy, declared so boring and forgettable that you are branded "Johnny Sameface" by fans, and ordered to start playing down your wrestling skills and acting like a boorish diva-like clown because "that's what fans want!".

* ToughActToFollow: Deconstructed, despite having been involved in multiple highly praised matches in the pre-USA Network era NXT, Johnny has been a huge flop and failed to live up to his hype once actual normie wrestling fans saw him for the first time.

* ReplacementScrappy: For Wrestling/GranAkuma in Wrestling/{{CHIKARA}}, though it wasn't much because of any fault of Gargano himself but rather for the circumstances Akuma left (after being kicked out of FIST and legitimately leaving CHIKARA). Made worse by the absolute lack of anyone talking about Akuma's reason for leaving, and Akuma's apparent good health in his appearances for [[Wrestling/DragonGate Dragon Gate USA]] and other indies.

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Though an internet darling for most of his career, actual wrestling fans of the casual and lapsed variety... well lets just say "hate sink" is a bit of an understatement once actual eyeballs got a hold of Gargano. He was quickly branded boring and generic, along with fans being upset at how much air time Gargano and his rival Ciampa got once NXT started airing on USA. Not to mention how many people evoked the dreaded EightDeadlyWords to describe how they didn't give a flying fuck about either men or their feud. Adding to this, Gargano picked up the nasty FanNickname "[[Wrestling/JimCornette Johnny Sameface]]" and "Vanilla Midget" and has been overshined by the likes of DexterLumis and Leon Ruff, much to the anger of smark fans who believe that Gargano should be the face of the company based on in ring talent, not personality and likability. Only Ciampa and Adam Cole themselves got more hate than Gargano, leading to NXT retooling Gargano to a more outlandish cartoon character type villain and Ciampa being demoted to jobber status (Cole remained protected due to him being CreatorsPet of Triple H).
* EightDeadlyWords: Gargano and Ciampa, both as wrestlers and their feud once NXT started airing to a wide audience and kept losing the ratings war to AEW when it was made the cornerstone of NXT in the early months of NXT's USA Network run.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: After tanking the ratings and being rejected by fans casual and lapsed for being boring, generic, and interchangeable and upstaged by the likes of Dexter Lumis and Karrion Kross and Leon Ruff, NXT decided to turn Johnny into a Chris Jericho clone style heel with his own entourage (his wife Candice, Austin Theory, and Indi Hartwell) where he behaves like a whiney and spoiled rotten diva. Needless to say, this has upset Gargano's smark fans who feel betrayed that the WWE felt that Johnny needed a personality let alone addressing the EightDeadlyWords criticism from new viewers who violently rejected Gargano and Ciampo in favor of AEW.

* ToughActToFollow: ''FOUR TIMES''.
** First there's his match against Andrade "Cien" Almas at ''NXT [=TakeOver=]: Philadelphia''. A war so intense for the NXT Championship that it ended a drought of five-star matches for WWE. It was commonly believed that nothing could surpass this until...
** ...his unsanctioned match with Wrestling/TommasoCiampa at ''NXT [=TakeOver=]: New Orleans'', a five-star WAR, and one of the most triumphant matches in the most triumphant NXT event to date. It set the bar so high, that the rest of the feud, and the rest of the [=TakeOvers=] couldn't even make a scratch on it until...
** ...his match with Wrestling/AdamCole at ''NXT [=TakeOver=]: New York'' exceeded every expectation, which says a lot, given that quality matches have become NXT's trademark. The match featured a lot of brutal spots and a finisher galore, but even The Undisputed Era's interference couldn't keep Johnny down, and he finally fulfilled his promise and became the NXT Champion and the first NXT Triple Crown Champion. Big Dave has also given the match an astonishing score of 5.5 stars, the first for WWE. It was believed nothing these two could do could match this until...
** ...their rematch at ''NXT [=TakeOver=]: XXV'' came damn close to doing so. The match was full of ridiculous counters and near-falls as the crowd was practically split on who to root for. In the end Cole hit the Last Shot on Johnny Wrestling to win the NXT Title. This match was rated 5.25 stars by Meltzer becoming NXT's second match rated more than five-stars in the span of a few months.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: '''Oh hell yes'''. It cannot be understated enough how much the fandom ''adores'' Johnny Gargano. He consistently puts on five-star classics, and his captivating feud with Tomasso Ciampa spawned what many consider one of the best matches to ever come out of NXT. There have been comparisons to '''[[Wrestling/BryanDanielson Daniel Bryan]]''' concerning how over Gargano is.

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Though an internet darling for most of his career, actual wrestling fans of the casual and lapsed variety... well lets just say "hate sink" is a bit of an understatement once actual eyeballs got a hold of Gargano. He was quickly branded boring and generic, along with fans being upset at how much air time Gargano and his rival Ciampa got once NXT started airing on USA. Not to mention how many people evoked the dreaded EightDeadlyWords to describe how they didn't give a flying fuck about either men or their feud. Adding to this, Gargano picked up the nasty FanNickname "[[Wrestling/JimCornette Johnny Sameface]]" and "Vanilla Midget" and has been overshined by the likes of DexterLumis and Leon Ruff, much to the anger of smark fans who believe that Gargano should be the face of the company based on in ring talent, not personality and likability. Only Ciampa and Adam Cole themselves got more hate than Gargano, leading to NXT retooling Gargano to a more outlandish cartoon character type villain and Ciampa being demoted to jobber status (Cole remained protected due to him being CreatorsPet of Triple H).
* EightDeadlyWords: Gargano and Ciampa, both as wrestlers and their feud once NXT started airing to a wide audience and kept losing the ratings war to AEW when it was made the cornerstone of NXT in the early months of NXT's USA Network run.

** The talk about Johnny being cursed after losing his title to Leon Ruff, takes on new harshness given how fast Gargano's star has fallen since NXT started airing on TV after years of streaming only. Being branded ratings poison with what should have been the climax of his career (his feud with Ciampa) being roundly rejected by fans who prefer AEW's soap opera antics, upstaged by a rebranded Sam Shaw of TNA Impact infamy, declared so boring and forgettable that you are branded "Johnny Sameface" by fans, and ordered to start playing down your wrestling skills and acting like a boorish diva-like clown because "that's what fans want!".

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: After tanking the ratings and being rejected by fans casual and lapsed for being boring, generic, and interchangeable and upstaged by the likes of Dexter Lumis, Damien Priest, Karrion Kross and Leon Ruff, NXT decided to turn Johnny into a Chris Jericho clone style heel with his own entourage (his wife Candice, Austin Theory, and Indi Hartwell) where he behaves like a whiny and spoiled rotten diva. Needless to say, this has upset Gargano's smark fans who feel betrayed that the WWE felt that Johnny needed a personality let alone addressing the EightDeadlyWords criticism from new viewers who violently rejected Gargano and Ciampa in favor of AEW.
* ToughActToFollow: Subverted. While involved in four critically acclaimed matches prior to NXT moving to USA Network, Gargano's pre-USA Network successes have largely been dismissed by casual and lapsed fans who find Gargano and his generic nature, plus generic opponents boring.