The AEW Wednesday Night Dynamite Thread

[Ricc1PW]

Only just watching this weeks show. Imagine my shock at seeing Fenix’s, part of what is presented as one of the best teams in the company, record is only 6-5.

Edited December 6, 2019 by Ricc1PW

[UK Kat Von D]

6 minutes ago, DavidB6937 said:

Are they though? Is AEW really that different? How much of anything new is AEW really bringing to the table right now?

Yes, all the things I listed are different from WWE. Didn’t say it was all new innovations, they didn’t invent tag team wrestling 

[Supremo]

Come off it, lads. I know the bloom is off the rose and a lot of people are down on them, but don't be a dickhead and try and argue that AEW isn't an alternative. Rightly or wrongly, it obviously is. In AEW the wrestlers themselves have far more say in terms of their characters, promos, matches and feuds. The entire show isn't overwritten to death and everyone doesn't end up having the exact same voice on promos, working the exact same style in the ring.

The problem we're discovering is that for as badly as WWE is overwritten and overproduced, with creativity completely stifled by having to go through the filter of Vince's insane brain, AEW is at the other end of the spectrum, completely underwritten and under-produced, with a lot of creative and inexperienced talent needing far, far more direction.

I think @tiger_rick brought it up a few weeks ago but it's clearer now than ever before. The people most likely to succeed in AEW, with the freedoms allowed in that environment, are people who've gone through the WWE system first. It's not a coincidence that Jericho, Dustin, Moxley and Cody are the biggest standouts. WWE has helped them develop all the fundamentals in the ring and on the mic. WWE has given them the ability to carry themselves like a star and work for TV. WWE has taught them how to set themselves apart and get over without breaking their necks day in and day out. And then AEW has given them the freedom to utilise these skills and put their own spin on it without having to spend all day standing outside Vince's office trying to salvage the bollocks scripted for them.

By contrast, the rest of AEW's roster are exposing that working the Independents or Japan is not a sufficient substitute for working WWE. The fundamentals aren't there. The ability to work TV isn't there. The ability to carry yourself like a star isn't there. Everyone is just doing dives and flips and fighting over the same, "let's wear some leather and be a dark cult," gimmick they've obviously fantasised about since they saw the Ministry of Darkness growing up.

What's clear after ten weeks of AEW television (other than that Tony Khan needs to give Cody and Jericho the entire show to book) is that the most exciting prospects going forward will be the Chad Gable, Rusev and Luke Harper types. Those who've been given all the tools by WWE, only to never be allowed to actually use them on Raw or Smackdown. Essentially, the dream scenario from now on will be Independent guys getting signed by WWE, going through NXT for a couple of years, then moving to AEW to actually utilise all that they've learnt. Perhaps if Kenny Omega had done that he wouldn't have booked himself into oblivion and completely killed his star aura dead. Maybe he could've asked Hunter and Shawn how to actually, you know, make something of yourself and build some superstar momentum rather than systematically chip away and self-sabotage until you've gone from biggest free agent in the business to absolutely irrelevant in less than twelve months.

[simonworden]

I watched the first half this week and skimmed through the second half. Nothing particularly off putting about any of it but I really didn't see the point in watching the second hour (maybe a bit less) so skimming through the final two matches was fine. As I said before it seems they are waiting somewhat to get closer to something. With only 2 weeks left before their Christmas break the creative work seems like the work ethic in most offices at this time of year in that it's just going through motions. 

The one thing I noticed which might have been mentioned before was the sound mixing is really off, during the matches the commentators are super loud but the arena is almost muted. It was hard to hear the impact of moves or anyone reaction to them which completely takes me out of it.

Also is there any reason they fiddle with the set week to week. I'm not sure if it's to do with what the arena allows, to keep it fresh of they are still trying to find out what works. I actually liked this weeks set up a lot with the single big screen and the flat walkway from Full Gear

[LWOLeN]

That 6-man opener from this week was tremendous. So much fun!

[Duke]

1 hour ago, LWOLeN said:

That 6-man opener from this week was tremendous. So much fun!

See, that match really annoyed me. In a vacuum, it was a lot of fun, but later in the same show Cody described it as part of a blood feud and yet we still had the Sammy Guevara comedy, the  commentators all giggling about Dustin doing his moves and the finish over contrived and silly. Which would be fine if the other team was scu, or the best friends, or jurassic express, but when it's the blood feud it feels weird. 

 

That feels symptomatic of the whole product, for me. The tone just seems all over the place.

Edited December 7, 2019 by Duke

[LaGoosh]

Everyone talking about who AEW should hire next, I'm hoping they hire someone like Norman Smiley and most the roster spend every day of the week doing nothing but fundamentals so that everything that isn't a highspot doesn't look like dog shit.

[Mr Butternut Squash]

Isn't Arn Anderson with them? They could really do with some experienced agents to iron shit out and introduce some heat and psychology to the matches.

I love Jericho but he's skirting the line with the laughs at the minute. I wish there was more intensity there. The Inner Circle don't feel like the dangerous heel group that I hoped they would. Proud and Powerful lean into the comedy too much and the Bucks seem like the last team you want to work with to generate heat and emotion.

[Philjax]

Loved it this week. Storyline progression, backstage promos, cool vignettes. Incredible decision to put Stadtlander over Shida which I'm completely on board with. I actually wouldn't have minded if she joined Brandi and Kong.

Negatives though: Leva Bates needs to be let go. She offers NOTHING. Should absolutely never be on Dynamite at the least, squashed or not.

Also, somebody needs to turn Pentagon into the Lucha Underground version pronto because this version is absolutely fucking shit to be honest. And drop the Zero Miedo bollocks because it's absolute cringe when he does it 75 times a match. It doesn't even mean anything. Of course you're not afraid of Christopher bleeding Daniels!

[UK Kat Von D]

2 hours ago, Philjax said:

And drop the Zero Miedo bollocks because it's absolute cringe when he does it 75 times a match. It doesn't even mean anything.

I think it means no fear actually 

[gmoney]

Enjoyed it as always this week, however the Brandi segment was the hardest I've cringed in ages watching wrestling. The dialogue she was coming out with was so embarrassing. I can't understand why she is determined to be a heel when she's so naturally likeable and has a ready made babyface role. 

[Jazzy G]

21 hours ago, Mr Butternut Squash said:

Isn't Arn Anderson with them? They could really do with some experienced agents to iron shit out 

Tully Blanchard is there as well, but their tag division is a mess.

I was watching an episode a few weeks back where there was once again a tag match where both teams managed to get all their moves in, and then eventually there was a mad scramble and a roll-up for the win. My thought on the situation was that they're so worried about parts of their roster looking weak nobody ends up looking strong. They need a couple of squashes, a match between names at the top of each hour. 

It's all well and good your teams getting all their stuff in, but if it's not leading to them winning the match it looks like crap. Plus wins and losses mattering when your roster is so thin you have to open the 50-50 club is going to have a detrimental effect in the long run. 

[Snitsky's back acne]

On 12/7/2019 at 3:58 AM, Supremo said:

Come off it, lads. I know the bloom is off the rose and a lot of people are down on them, but don't be a dickhead and try and argue that AEW isn't an alternative.

Alternative to me though is not 'doing the same stuff but a bit differently' or 'well they have different wrestlers'. Maybe that's where I'm not getting that it's an 'alternative'.
ECW was an alternative to mainstream US wrestling in the mid-90's - it had brawls, blood, swearing... all the stuff WWF and WCW DIDN'T have at the time. 
I'm not saying this as a knock or a negative, and I have read all the arguments for why people believe them to be an alternative, but AEW is not doing anything that personally makes me go 'Wow, yeah, they're different! They're an alternative'. Maybe it's because I'd never seen anything like ECW at the time and now, as an old jaded fuck who has seen pretty much everything, for something to truly be alternative to me it has to be so different than its nearest comparison. I dunno...

Again, not saying it as a negative just saying I don't personally see it.
 

[DavidB6937]

45 minutes ago, Snitsky's back acne said:

Again, not saying it as a negative just saying I don't personally see it.
 

Yeah i think that all sums it up for me quite well really. While it is technically an 'alternative' it's just not as 'alternative' as I'd hoped it would be. There are glimpses of it here and there but on the whole there's more similarities with existing wrestling than not.

[tiger_rick]

It's an alternative to WWE because, and here's the kicker, it's not WWE. 

If the different name, different wrestlers, different commentators, different bookers, different matches and different TV channel don't give it away, just remember- it's not WWE.