AEW DYNAMITE HITS & MISSES (5/8): Swerve has no back-up, Perry’s promo, Deeb and Toni Storm, Trent vs. O.C., Jericho’s Learning Tree, more

Dynamite in Edmonton continues AEW’s build to Double or Nothing and looks to further some of the storylines that were sprinkled throughout last week’s show. There were at least five different intriguing stories that were set up both subtly and obviously last week. Can they make these stories into something that gets viewers to tune in week after week to see what’ll happen next? The answer to that question begins on this week’s episode. Let’s see how they did.

HITS

TRENT VS. O.C.

Nothing like a good grudge match to get things started. It’s a cliche in wrestling with two former friends battling it out, but the specter of Don Callis hanging over everything continues to make this interesting to watch. They did enough for this to be a fun TV match, but left a lot on the table in what will likely be a stipulation match at Double or Nothing where we’ll see who is truly joining the Don Callis family. (Has to be Trent, right?!)

There was also a rundown of what to expect on the show throughout this opening match which was a welcome sight.

REVISITING JACK PERRY’S PROMO – ANARCHY IN THE ARENA

For what seems like years now, I’ve seen social media/YouTube-only promos that AEW talent record after shows. For years, I have begged them to air many of these on the next Dynamite. THANK YOU for showing Jack Perry’s promo from after last week’s Dynamite. It was extremely well done and helped the narrative big time. It also shows how far he’s come over the past year. Great stuff, and thank goodness more people got to see it.

Kenny Omega did a good job with his promo as well setting up an Anarchy in the Arena match for Double or Nothing. I wish they did a better job letting people know they would reveal the two other participants at the end of the show. For some, it would have added the anticipation for the final segment and kept people watching. That said, I thought the choices were great and it should be a fun match for the PPV.

SWERVE HAS NO BACKUP

Just what you need to get some sympathy for the World Champion and the desire to see him get his hands on Christian in Las Vegas. While most people could see it coming with Brian Cage lurking behind Swerve the whole time, this is storytelling. Christian was hand-picked by the Bucks. They helped him set up Swerve, who is very much outnumbered now with no backup. It was important to separate him from the Mogul Embassy and this was a perfect way to do it. You put plenty of heat on Christian and his group while Swerve has to find a way to overcome this challenge.

OVER THE TOP JERICHO

I do understand Chris Jericho is polarizing in this new role, but I continue to be entertained by the ridiculous over-the-top fun-loving Learning Tree. It may get old if it continues for a month, but Hook is returning next week so I am hopeful they will be able to keep the interest up in someone shutting Jericho’s mouth.

MISSES

SERENA DEEB & TONI STORM

Since Toni Storm has been doing this “Timeless” gimmick, it’s been an uphill climb for every wrestler they have put against her because AEW is framing her as a heel, but the fans really enjoy the entertainment value of the gimmick. So it was not a wise decision to put Serena Deeb out there live in front of the crowd when that is clearly not her strength. Her promo was fine in what she was trying to communicate to the audience, but it lacked the personality needed to overcome Toni and the crowd. They did not put them both in a position to succeed and it ended up being a lackluster segment.

MARIAH SHOULD BE MORE DOMINANT

Considering this was a match to get Mariah May a win back after last week, there is no way a match with Harley Cameron should have gone more than one segment. This should have been a 3-4 minute match with May winning and getting some momentum back. They may see something in Harley, but she’s still relatively inexperienced and should not be that competitive with someone of May’s caliber at this point in her career.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I thought this was a solid episode of Dynamite that built upon last week and is setting up Double or Nothing nicely.

Continued thanks to everyone listening to “The All Elite Conversation Club” on the PWTorch Dailycast podcast lineup. Look for our show to be dropped on Saturday night this week. Search “pwtorch” in your podcast app to subscribe. Joel Dehnel and I have a great time breaking down all things AEW! Send questions and comments to allelitecc@gmail.com.