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AEW DYNAMITE HITS & MISSES
New Intro – MAJOR MISS
Yeah this didn’t work. This felt like filler music. I hope this was filler music. If Todd Martin hates Adam Cole’s music, I can only imagine what he will have to say about this.
Wardlow Defeated Orange Cassidy – HIT
Cassidy’s new music is a great way of opening a show. Even if you don’t know the song specifically, you know you’ve heard it before. Justin Roberts made a subtle change tonight calling Orange’s valets “his” Best Friends rather than “the” Best Friends is a noticeable change. It links them together in a way that feels more cohesive than just lumping Cassidy in with a pre-established team.
The match will be divisive but I liked it. Cassidy playing heel is a fun choice that worked better than I thought it would. Cassidy working the weasel type of heel meshes with his normal character as well as Rob Thomas meshes with Carlos Santana. Wardlow showcased some great agility for someone his size and the crowd loved him.
The post match “handshake” was a great touch as well.
Pac Video Segment – HIT
Great segment showing the highlights from PAC’s title defense against Shoto Umino. The crowd chants mixed with great spots made me wish they’d have just showed the match on Dynamite or Rampage. Doing that would truly have something for everyone.
Chris Jericho Segment – MINOR MISS
Jericho’s performance was good in this, but the logic of his arguments don’t make sense. He says he’s better than Kingston, but Kingston beat him in PPV and in Blood and Guts (I’ll give this to Eddie whether Chris tapped or not). You can only play the “I’m better than you” when you win. Calling it the final fight just brings to mind how much longer this program has gone than it should’ve. Just finish this and let everyone go in different directions.
Eddie Kingston Segment – MINOR HIT
Simple but effective promo. The exact opposite of what Jericho just did and a great bookend to the commercial. While Jericho rambled on and on, Kingston made every syllable count. Neither of these separately work well but played together, make even this extended feud seem worth running to the finish line.
Jon Moxley Defeated Konosuke Takeshita – HOME RUN
What is there to say? This was fan-effing-tastic. Turning the tables on the tropes by having Takeshita bleed rather than Mox is a smart choice, as it almost limited him. It’s like bleeding to Mox is like Popeye taking a dab of spinach or Tommy Oliver calling up the green (or white) Power Ranger outfit. Konosuke was a great style clash with Mox, and they played it to perfection. The near falls made my eyes pop and the crowd gave this a PPV feel, which I’m sure is what Tony Khan wants with the Fyter Fest branding.
House of Black Segment – MINOR HIT
Simple promo working in footage of King’s assault on Darby Allin this weekend at a fan signing. Working Julia Hart into the segments is a good way of building her up as a heel. She needs all the experience she can get.
Christian Cage Segment – MISS
Cage’s barbs are starting to lose their edge, and are now starting to feel boring.
Luchasaurus Defeated Griff Garrison – MINOR MISS
I get that it’s a squash meant to showcase Mr. Saurus, but having him attack Garrison because he looks like Jungle Boy is just a recycled BTE storyline. Why are we doing this? AEW loves to cater to hardcore fans, but is this what hardcore fans want? Old BTE gags and bits? I’m not even a hardcore fan. I’m just a fan with a good memory. I can only imagine how the hardcore fans feel.
I will say, the idea of Christian being able to control Luchasaurus is fascinating. I’m into a Dario/Matanza Cueto type dynamic.
Jericho Appreciation Society Segment – MINOR HIT
The 2.0 men earned their paycheck this week with fun snaps. Garcia’s attitude and intensity came across well on screen.
All Out Segment – HIT
Just announcing the when and where. That’s nice. Now we know, and knowing is half the battle.
Hangman Page Segment – MINOR HIT
This was fine, but I would’ve preferred separate segments for Page and Silver and Reynolds. John and Alex calling out House of Black should be fun, and is a step up in competition for them.
Claudio Castagnoli Defeated Jake Hager – HIT
Good match that the fans in attendance really enjoyed. Having JR come out before this match made it feel bigger. My one issue is Claudio’s variety of moves. He does a handful of things really really well, but I’d be worried about how long he can make the crowd pop for that limited set of moves. That is a problem for another time. Tonight we celebrate the Swiss Superman.
Hook Segment – MINOR HIT
Quick segment to take us to commercial. Not much to this except for building the aura and legend of Hook.
Toni Storm/Thunder Rosa/Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter Segment – MINOR HIT
Goofy promo reintroducing Baker back into the women’s scene in AEW. Always a fan of Hayter on the mic so that’s a plus for me.
Serena Deeb Defeated Anna Jay – MAJOR HIT
Really fun match. Jay and Deeb worked really well together and Jay looked fantastic out there. It’s been awhile since she’s done anything meaningful but it looks like she’s been working on improving. Having this match play as Deeb needing her experience and savvy to defeat Jay’s raw talent was smart. A few more matches of this quality with some wins and she could see a title match against Rosa in the near future.
Jade Cargill/Baddies Segment – HIT
This has blossomed into such a fun group. Each character has their own mannerisms and feelings. Their motivations and backstories are different. Cargill is incredible as the big boss and Stokely works so well off of her. Calling Leila Gray the “interim baddie” was clever. While I really hope they have a direction they’re heading with this, the dynamic works as well as tried and true groups like Rhett and Link. It all works Mythically well.
Anna Jay/Tay Conti Segment – MINOR HIT
This was a fun way to aid this segment. Having Tay work off of Jay and their past relationship made up for Tay’s weaker english.
Swerve in Our Glory Defeated Young Bucks, Ricky Starks and Powerhouse Hobbs – MAJOR HIT
I really hate how AEW does these triple threat tag matches. Why only have two people in the ring when you can have one wrestler from each team in the ring and just make it what it should be: a triple threat tag match.
This was a fantastic match. The action was excellent and Keith Lee’s athleticism came through more than I remember since his debut.
The ending to this match bothers me. I get that Starks and Hobbs may have been feuding with Swerve and Lee on Rampage, but not enough people watch that. If not enough people watch that, you need to recap it. Especially if you’re going to be furthering the story on Dynamite. If you’re not going to do that, have Matt or Nick take the pin. They are established stars and whether or not you’re trying to get to Bucks vs FTR at Death Before Dishonor won’t matter. Triple threats are treated as less than in singles action anyway, so saying “oh we would’ve beaten either team on their own” is a logical argument to make. Sometimes it’s ok for AEW and their EVPs to give a Buck.
Overall – HIT
This was a solid AEW Dynamite. Not an otherworldly, PPV quality show, but higher energy than last week. Stories had a clear direction and the action was solid.
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