By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
AEW Dynamite Hits
MJF and Adam Cole: This story has quickly emerged as the best episodic television that AEW has produced. The bromance videos and the dance-off were not for everyone, but the basic story of these two rivals forming a shaky friendship has caught on in a major way. The feeling that the friendship could end at any given moment makes all of their time together feel must see. Cole was given the title shot that he wanted, which makes him feel like the more likely of the two to turn on the other, but there could definitely be more twists and turns coming. I originally expected one of them to turn before their showdown title match, but now I’m not so sure. They have a really good thing going and the same sense of mystery regarding the fragility of their relationship could make a babyface vs. babyface match work while also allowing the company to extend this red hot alliance. More than anything, I hope they stick the landing whenever that happens.
Swerve Strickland and AR Fox attack Nick Wayne: This was excellent. Swerve and Fox came off as remorseless heels while beating up Wayne and his buddies and then trashing the garage that Wayne’s late father used to train pro wrestlers. Forcing Wayne to call Darby Allin and then Swerve shit talking him was great. Give me more of this Swerve and less of the guy who leads bad factions that don’t go anywhere.
Chris Jericho and Konosuke Takeshita vs. Sammy Guevara and Daniel Garcia: While not as compelling as MJF and Adam Cole’s saga, the question of whether Jericho will align with Don Callis is another example of good episodic television. They are doing a nice job of milking out Jericho’s decision. The match finish saw Jericho reluctantly take advantage of Don Callis hitting Garcia with a baseball bat. Jericho ultimately took the pin, but he was clearly conflicted. It was good to see Takeshita in this match, but I continue to feel like he should be showcased destroying undercard talent on a near weekly basis.
Jack Perry and Rob Van Dam: A Hit in the moment, but the thought of RVD working a full fledged match after going public with his CTE diagnosis is alarming. I know he’s been working occasional independent shows, but I really hope that the match is done in a way that protects him. Putting that aside, the live crowd was thrilled to see him and it was awesome to hear him come out to Pantera’s “Walk” again after all these years. Perry was really good as the cowardly heel and watching him use a young girl in the front row as a human shield was hilarious.
Jon Moxley vs. Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Trent Beretta in an anything goes three-way match: Anything goes and barbed wire was used and yet somehow Moxley didn’t blade? Someone could have made a lot of money by taking the long shot odds had there been a prop bet. Anyway, the match was a crowd pleaser even if the hardcore style isn’t my personal favorite. Trent winning this match after taking the pin in last week’s tag team match was fine. I can’t say that the idea of a parking lot brawl does much for me, but at least it shows that AEW is trying to give Rampage a hook.
Kenny Omega, Matt Jackson, and Nick Jackson vs. Jeff Jarrett, Jay Lethal, and Satnam Singh: I did a double take when this match was announced. I figured Lethal could hang with The Elite in their style of a match, but the idea of Jarrett and Singh working with them looked awkward on paper. They actually pulled it off nicely. The finishing sequence made the referee look like an idiot, which happens way too often in AEW, but it was definitely a crowd pleasing home stretch with the Hardys, Brandon Cutler, and Hangman Page all getting involved to fight off the interference from Sonjay Dutt and Karen Jarrett. The post match angle with The Elite announcing that they have re-signed with the company didn’t get much of a reaction from the live crowd, but Omega mentioning that they could pop up on Collision generated a lot of buzz and speculation that perhaps The Elite and CM Punk can do some business together.
“Aussie Open” Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis vs. El Hijo del Vikingo and Komander for the ROH Tag Team Titles: I have no idea why we’re seeing ROH titles defended on AEW television again. I also have no idea why ROH exists in its current form, but I digress. This was an entertaining tag team match with the luchadores performing their flashy high spots before taking a clean and decisive loss. I continue to hope that Vikingo will be booked in a real program. It seems like they have access to him often enough that he should be doing more than just popping up in random matches with no storyline support.
AEW Dynamite Misses
Toni Storm vs. Hikaru Shida for the AEW Women’s Championship: A Hit from a match quality standpoint. But the lack of storytelling in the women’s division was on full display. Shida beat Nyla Rose in a Rampage match that wasn’t even billed as a number one contender’s match. It was randomly announced afterward that Shida would get a title shot on Dynamite. In other words, there was no storyline build to Shida getting the title shot, let alone winning the championship. They didn’t build fan interest in seeing her take the title from Storm, they just did it. And it’s okay to do the occasional storyline in that manner, but there’s an obvious lack of quality storytelling in the AEW women’s division. I came away from this wondering if this title change was a case of Tony Khan overcompensating for that “Book the women’s division better” fan sign that was inexplicably shown after last week’s women’s match. And this marks a second forgettable title reigns for the talented Storm. This one was an improvement over her reign as the interim champion, but it still left a lot to be desired despite the fact that she really seems to be coming into her own as a heel. Meanwhile, Athena is killing it and yet she continues to buried behind a paywall on the ROH show. Why? AEW has enough talented wrestlers to have a good women’s division. It’s time to make some tough decisions and truly spotlight those women while pulling back on the television time of those who are not delivering.
Jason, who are the women who are not delivering in your opinion? That’s not meant to be a barbed question, I am genuinely interested.
I don’t have access to their minute-by-minute ratings. And they have eyes and can see which wrestlers are struggling. The point isn’t to bury a bunch of wrestlers. It’s that the company would be better off picking a core group to build around rather than worrying about whether everyone gets occasional television time on Dynamite and Collision. This isn’t a youth baseball team where you have to give everyone equal playing time. They have Rampage and ROH for talent that need reps and aren’t ready for the main shows. There’s just too many times when the talent that I would build around disappear for weeks at a time. Can anyone name a current feud in the women’s division? Can anyone explain why Athena’s awesome work is behind a paywall?