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LOOKING AT LAST NIGHT'S AEW DYNAMITE

AEW DYNAMITE, MAY 15, 2024

SWERVE BEATS CAGE

The presentation of Swerve Strickland was much improved on this week's edition of Dynamite.  The video package of his media appearances, recap of last week's events, countdown to his match and his pre match promo added massively to his match with Brian Cage. Swerve should be presented like AEWs biggest star, and these extra elements will do a lot in achieving that. The match with Cage was really good, albeit a tad long. I would have liked to have seen maybe Cage get less in on the champion, but it's a minor complaint as Swerve’s win was decisive in the end, and with the House Call, which is a better finish than the contrived Swerve Stomp. Another nitpick with the match was a sequence of very indie, leg slapping, weak looking strikes, which should be left on the independent scene.  

The post match angle with Christian Cage was good stuff. The story is simple. Christian took Swerve’s faction last week. This week he took his blood (and smeared it on a family picture) and next he will take his championship.  

WILLOW IS MONE

Willow Nightingale has the potential to be one of AEWs greatest babyfaces. Not just in the women’s division, but the whole company. This was yet another excellent, genuine promo, so good that it is turning Mercedes Mone heel, whether it's intended or not.  The crowd are with her, and were even more on her side when Mercedes promo came across as extremely arrogant. The exact opposite of the relatable Willow. Willow dropping Mone through a table was a very impactful end to this excellent segment, just as impactful as Willow’s closing line.  If anyone in AEW has given a second's consideration to attempting to turn Willow heel. Do not do it. It would be a monumental mistake. Whether the plan is to turn Mercedes heel or not, this match now feels important. There will likely be a hot split crowd for this clash at Double or Nothing, which should make it something really memorable that can potentially sky rocket Willow. 

ELITE SHENANIGANS

The Young Bucks “fired” Christopher Daniels, because he stood up to them. A nice idea in theory, of course one that has its issues, when AEW plays to the smart fan. If fans are expected to know why Jack Perry was suspended or know the context of the CM Punk backstage video, then you have to assume that AEW fans know that Daniels is of course not really fired. When you go one way, it becomes very difficult to then go the other way. Daniels was the perfect guy to play the veteran standing up to the bullies, and maybe down the line a babyface can reinstate him when The Elite no longer have all the power. 

Kazuchika Okada vs Dax Harwood was a very good main event. Did it need to be a title match? Probably not. However, promos throughout the show to build to the match made it feel somewhat more important than the other infinite amount of empty title matches we get regularly on AEW TV. I would like to see Okada winning matches clean, as it will only help establish him as a dominant main event star. His association with The Elite and his great mannerisms do enough to heel him already.  

A still very injured Darby Allin was revealed as Eddie Kingston’s replacement in the Anarchy in the Arena match. Seems like a crazy decision to me to put Darby in a match like that, presumably before he is 100%, but he is a perfect fit to represent team AEW.  Although, don’t think too much about it, because you will be left wondering why one of Bryan Danielson’s stable mates didn’t step in. This was a good end to the show.

A GOOD FLOW

I thought this show flowed excellently, and much better than any recent episode of Dynamite I can remember. The show had a good mixture of wrestling, angles, promos and recap packages. All of which were a welcome change from how often we get endless amounts of matches that go too long.  Overall this was probably the strongest Dynamite since Big Business. Hook delivered a career best promo and Chris Jericho entertained again. Will Ospreay delivered a killer promo to Roderick Strong, doing the best he could to add some substance to that match, despite me still wondering why it's happening at all. Ospreay feels like a lesser part of the show because of it. There was a solid House of Black/Adam Copeland segment to continue the build to their match and we had another wildly entertaining Toni Storm promo. AEW is not without its issues at the moment, but this was a much improved show.

 

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