SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
BIG BUSINESS baby!
It’s been a great couple of weeks for AEW as they begin a new era. Dynamite in Boston was another big opportunity to get the eyes of the wrestling world on them as they continue to build their storylines for the Dynasty PPV and beyond. I am back to really looking forward to watching Dynamite week-to week and they even made Collision important last weekend. I’m excited to see what is in store for Big Business so let’s get to it!
HITS
MERCEDES!
What a shock!! Never saw that coming! Seriously though, it was a memorable moment to see Mercedes Mone strut to the ring. She was presented like a star and acted like one. I thought it was a good idea to have her re-introduce herself for the first few minutes in case there are newer or younger AEW fans that needed a reminder. You could see how much this meant to her from the start. The theme of the last two weeks of AEW has been emotion. Emotion for Sting. Emotion for Osprey. Emotion for Swerve. Emotion for Okada. And now, emotion for Mercedes. Wrestling is good when you can feel it and I have “felt it”.
HEEL OKADA
I know there was a lot of discussion about whether it was a good idea to have Okada arrive in AEW as a heel. I wrote last week that I loved the idea and so far I feel it’s paying off. The question put out there was whether Okada could get the fans that are thrilled to see him to boo him. Well, first, he had Alex Marvez sing Happy Birthday to Matthew, which showed off his heel mannerisms. Then during their match, he played every heel note to perfection and by the time the match was half over, he had the majority of the fans booing. His team won the match dirty and Okada pinning Eddie Kingston certainly was not going to elicit cheers. I’m not wild about the Continental title being involved in this story, as I think that belt should only be defended each year in the Continental Classic tournament, but I don’t feel it’ll be that big of a deal in the big picture.
WILL OSPREAY IS A STAR!
I’m going to keep saying it. I’m going to keep writing it. Will Ospreay can and should be the biggest star AEW has ever had. I get chills every time he comes out. The fans erupt and chant his name. He oozes charisma. The joy he has for the business comes out in every word he speaks and so far his adjustment to live weekly TV is nearly flawless. Listening to him this week on Chris Jericho’s podcast, you hear how humble he is and how thankful he is to be doing what he is doing. This also comes out on the mic in the ring. He is a guy you want to get behind and as long as he keeps this up, AEW has its 80’s Hogan… it’s 90’s Stone Cold… it’s 00’s Cena.
JAY WHITE’S PRISON DOOR OPENS A LITTLE MORE
I’ve been saying “Free Jay White” for months. Finally, I can hear the creak of the cell door opening slightly. First, he rightly went over an injured Darby Allin. I was nervous he would end up losing to a banged up opponent again like with MJF late last year. Thankfully, they told a great story with an injured Darby, and White mostly dominated the match. Then, the breakup of the Bang Bang Scissor Gang which was LONG overdue. Jay White needs to be a despicable heel and this segment put him right on the path to that again.
WOMEN’S MAIN EVENT
On paper it was not a “main event” match and of course it was done to have Mercedes come out one more time at the end of the show. However, give credit to Riho and Willow for putting on a great match that had the crowd engaged from the start. Those two are skilled performers and they did a great job. It was a nice way to end the show and it looks like they are going to ease Mercedes into things, so the challenge will be to keep making her a big deal until they decide to put her in the World Title program.
QUICK HITS
THE UNDISPUTED STORY: I loved the storytime with Adam Cole setting up Wardlow’s title match. It told a backstory and a true reason why he should have a chance to defeat Samoa Joe and become the new champion. It was a great use of the photos and old video and was quick and to the point with no goofiness or nonsense. More of this stuff please.
JOE’S WIN OVER WARDLOW: This was a decisive win over a guy who they had taken the time to push and set up as a legitimate challenger. There was no extra “protection” of Wardlow. Joe just beat him and retained his title. Joe smiling at an irate Swerve was great and kicking the “Staff” member while he was down on the way out was flat-out gold. Joe plays his part so well and continues to do a great job as the World Champ.
MISSES
MERCEDES FOLLOW-UP DURING SHOW
After a solid start to the show with Mercedes’ debut, it would have been nice to see her in some backstage segments interacting with other wrestlers or even teasing that we would see her later in the show. A major long-standing issue with AEW is having a star in a segment early in the show and not having a follow up or even a mention the rest of the show. There needs to be more of an on-going story throughout an episode to keep the audience engaged. It’s not as big of a problem when you have a stacked show, but we should not have gone 90 minutes without seeing or hearing from Mercedes after this was built up to be such a big deal.
Continued thanks to everyone listening to The All Elite Conversation Club on the PW Torch podcast lineup on Friday afternoons. Joel Dehnel and I have a great time breaking down all things AEW and appreciate those who have given us a try!
Send questions and comments to allelitecc@gmail.com.
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