YMMV / Johnny Gargano

• Alternative Joke Interpretation: Gargano's reaction to R-Truth calling him and Ciampa DX, asking how Road Dogg was doing, and saying "Thank you" instead of DX's signature line? "At least it wasn't the other two, I guess." But which two? ^Explanation Gargano could have either been referring to the DX line ("Suck It!") or Billy Gunn and X-Pac, both of whom are no longer in WWE.
• Arc Fatigue: His NXT feud with Tommaso Ciampa. Ciampa turned on Gargano in May 2017, and spent the majority of the following year out injured. Upon Ciampa's return, the former partners spent the following year feuding on and off (During which Gargano went through a Heel–Face Revolving Door) and were scheduled to face each other for the NXT title before Ciampa suffered another injury. After Ciampa returned as face, #DIY would eventually reunite only for Gargano to turn on Ciampa and resume the feud with the roles reversed; ultimately, the feud didn't end until April 2020, long after the NXT audience had grown tired of the feud, with audience reactions to the climax of the feud being further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic meaning the blow-off match took place in an empty Performance Centre.
• Awesome Music:
  • #DIY have "Chrome Hearts", a rock piece that sounds like it came straight out of Dynasty Warriors.
  • His WWE Cruiserweight Classic theme is a sweet remix of "Chrome Hearts" in the form of "From the Heart".
  • After Ciampa's betrayal, he switched to a vocal version of "From the Heart", called "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 returned 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.
  • His theme after his second heel turn in NXT titled "Comin Back For You." Its starts out as "Rebel Heart" before it slows and peters out, before a One-Woman Wail gives way to music and lyrics that 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.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: 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 Daniel Bryan concerning how over Gargano is. The hype about Johnny cooled off a bit once NXT got onto USA Network, but he's managed to find a niche for himself leading a heel stable and being an entertaining player in the NA Championship scene.
• Foe Yay Shipping: On Gargano's part, Ciampa meant so much to him that anything having to do with #DIY had become a Trauma Button for him. After Ciampa returned, the subtext only doubled, especially after 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.
• Harsher in Hindsight:
  • This video of #DIY with Oney Lorcan filling in for Ciampa. While this was Played for Laughs... Let's just say that Ciampa wasn't laughing.
  • The use of Fozzy's "Judas" on WWE's part for NXT TakeOver: Chicago. It was the night that Ciampa turned on him.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • Johnny's promo to The Bar on WWE SmackDown before teaming with Ciampa, 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 Adam Cole in a 2-out-of-3 falls match that was rated 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!
  • Johnny considering Alex Shelley his "wrestling big brother" becomes this due to both men's association and friendships with different members of the Kliq.^note Shelley and Kevin Nash became friends during the latters time in TNA, whilst Gargano worked with Triple H and Shawn Michaels during his time in NXT.
• Ho Yay: #DIY had a lot of this, to the point that Chuck Taylor lamented their breakup as it made his list of fifty ways they had sexual chemistry together pointless.
• Memetic Mutation:
  • Gargano's facial expressions during his second Heel run in NXT have become this. Ironically, Jim Cornette has accused this of being a Forced Meme, claiming that it's a response to him referring to Gargano as "Johnny Same-face."
  • "Speaking of 'Not Good,' it's Johnny Gargano!" ^note This 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 Triple H's favorites, they joked that Smith was fired for "burying" Gargano.
• The Producer Thinks of Everything: One isolated instance in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic. The second round matches of the tournament were taped a month before NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II, where Gargano would hurt his knee after being targeted by The Revival. The actual CWC episode broadcast just days later would show Gargano's knee bandaged up, allowing his second-round opponent TJ Perkins to attack said weakness and advance to the quarterfinals. In short, Gargano was selling a knee injury weeks before it actually happened.
• Replacement Scrappy: For Gran Akuma in 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 Dragon Gate USA and other indies.
• Rescued from the Scrappy Heap: 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 My God, What Have I Done?.
• They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: 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. The complaints were somewhat mitigated with the updated version of the theme that debuted in March 2023, which added additional instrumental work that brought the song closer to the feel of the original "Rebel Heart" theme.