The AEW Wednesday Night Dynamite Thread

[CavemanLynn]

A really odd show. It makes sense to give the big guns a night off after the PPV, but it felt weird having a show that was essentially blow offs to feuds that have been running almost exclusively on Dark.

That kind of opener is the kind of shit that's going to kill Cage. Sure, he's a flippy meathead, but Sydal makes him look like a gormless blown up chump and we're still supposed to see him as a threat. Nah, mate. Taz telling me doesn't show me anything. And did Hobbs miss his cue? I blinked and he was suddenly there, but Team FTW/Taz were already fucking off.

The Bunkhouse Brawl was typical stunt shite that seemed even more so after Mox vs Kingston. Did I miss the reason Allie mucked around with QT? Now she's back with her husband, because, erm, Eddie Kingston said so, but she maxed out QT's credit cards, so boo, I guess? He's mates with the Rhodes, somehow, so I'm sure he'll be fine.

The Bucks still act like cunts, and I don't know why Marvez has a job. 

I know it's grumpy old men territory to moan about the audio, but I usually forgive the odd mixing error switching from the arena to backstage. But it happened EVERY TIME they cut to the back, and nobody fixed it.

MJF is basically the only heel who wrestles and acts like a proper shit. This is surely the overdue Jericho face turn on the way. Next week's Vegas trip should be everything Miro and Sabian stag skits should have been.

Checking Jade Cargill's Wiki suggests she started training last year under Heath Slater and... QT Marshall, and last night was her DEBUT. In a wrestling ring. On national TV. With the boss and the boss' wife. I know Cody wears his nepotism with pride, but fuck me, he's a parody. People can say Tony Kahn should pull things up, but seriously, is Tony Kahn, SORRY, "TK" going to tell WCW/Attitude Era alumnus Seven and former WWE suOOOperstar Cody to wind it in? Cody's heel turn gets put off again, if it ever is happening, and we get another 4 weeks of him being an obnoxious dick while being cheered by his employees at ringside. "They love this kid!" 

I'm in a proper cynical mood this week.

Edit: I totally forgot about Spears vs Sky. I was stunned when the comms mentioned Sky has the 3rd highest win record in AEW. Apart from those 3 weeks in lockdown when he was a glorious gurning gobshite, Spears is the definition of nothing. Sky's star has fallen so far since being touted as the next big thing, it's ridiculous. Wasn't he an early contender for the TNT title at one point? He does have a mean line in Smackdown midcarder tights, though. I guess Tully possibly making a play for him gives him something to do, but there's not enough to him as a face to get me into him turning heel. Sad to say, he's practically Apollo Crews at this point.

Conti vs Red Velvet was typical womens filler, with too much running around and not enough crispness. The judo throws might feel good doing them, but they look sloppy. The Dark Order getting their own little feuds while Brodie Lee is away seems ripe for a power struggle when he returns, but I don't think many of the DO are strong enough characters to make it worth it.

The main was carried by Schiavone and Kingston going at it and REALLY pushing the Family split. This sequel couldn't match the first, but the mask ripping and final run of sickening head drops, while Big Tone highlighted Fenix's neck injury and Eddie started to have regrets, was great stuff. Whooped inside when he shoved Rey's limp body out of the ring and got in Penta's head. And then, HOWAY SCUMBAGS. Hoo fucking Ray. Him and Kingston are going to kill each other and it's going to be glorious. Eddie might be stuck trying to elevate Butcher and Blade vs Death Triangle, but if anyone can do it, he can.

Yeah. Not great. But I'll still be tuning in next week.

Edited November 12, 2020 by CavemanLynn
Erased Shaun Spears from time and space

[unfitfinlay]

I watched Being The Elite immediately after Dynamite. It's insane that the amazing "Fuck Hangman" storyline was on the semi-cannon Youtube show while that awful segment with Cody, Jade Cargill and Brandi made it to the main show. I'm all for AEW giving people opportunities but it's a really brave move to expect someone that green to carry a segment like that. Especially since it wasn't that long ago that they did practically the same angle, far better, with Jake Roberts. I'm not sure what Brandi was doing either. I was relieved when she came out but got immediately distracted with the weird way she was talking. She's been a featured member of the roster since the company started. We know how she talks.

The good thing about AEW though, is that they always seem to recognise when something isn't working and change course. Hopefully they'll do that here, and quickly.

[LaGoosh]

Brandi coming out and hitting all the sassy black woman cliches was truly dreadful television. 

Amazes me how Cody can do stuff like whipping angle or his promos against Jericho that are so heartfelt, compelling and emotional but also do some of the shittest stuff possible. When he's good he's really, really good but he's also often boring as sin or so crap you want to punch him. He's consistently frustrating. 

[FLips]

I think I'm in the minority of people who really enjoyed the Bunkhouse match. Felt it was a really fun brawl and couldn't care less that QT got the pin because he was the main part of the story anyway. 

Brandi as LaGoosh said was a sassy black woman cliche which despite being black came across as really forced because she never acts like that. No matter what she does she's crap at all of it. A real detriment to the show.

[Nick James]

Imagine being some of the decent talent on Dark and not being paid to wrestle, or being on very minimal, to the point that Cody recently said 'if you ask some of the extras what they earn.....my dad would have lost it' and then Jade Cargill rocks up, shits the bed and gets signed to a contract.

The interview with Cody about the 'tiered contract system' is quite an interesting one. Can be found at the below link. Cody couldn't remember is Red Velvet was signed or not.

https://www.mandatory.com/wrestlezone/news/1210046-cody-rhodes-reveals-details-aew-tiered-contract

 

[Guest]

That reads more to me like the extra guys are getting generous ones offs than a pittance?

[Chili]

I'm taking a punt she was hired way prior to this and that announcement is following a TV timeline.

Anyway I thought she was pretty ropey in that segment and then I thought, fuck it, it's her introduction segment, shit turns gold sometimes, Some people just strike it on their first go, some take a bit of time. So I'm just going to wait out and see what happens with the angle. I think there is something in Jade Cargill, she was clearly nervy as fuck, they should have made her spiel way briefer and to the bullets on that promo but had a decent voice and presence to her. She's also in absolutely ridiculous physical shape without it looking grotesque, there might be something in it, then it might be as dross like the Nightmare Collective. Either way she's on TV until that match is over or gets cancelled.

While we're at it with the lasses, Tay Conti is absolutely stunning isn't she. How is she ever gonna do a spell as a villain with that face?

Edited November 13, 2020 by Chili
Spelling tosser

[Cod Eye]

36 minutes ago, Nick James said:

Imagine being some of the decent talent on Dark and not being paid to wrestle, or being on very minimal, to the point that Cody recently said 'if you ask some of the extras what they earn.....my dad would have lost it' and then Jade Cargill rocks up, shits the bed and gets signed to a contract.

The interview with Cody about the 'tiered contract system' is quite an interesting one. Can be found at the below link. Cody couldn't remember is Red Velvet was signed or not.

https://www.mandatory.com/wrestlezone/news/1210046-cody-rhodes-reveals-details-aew-tiered-contract

 

As Louch says, I think you may have wrongly interpreted what he was saying. It sounds like they are paying a very generous "signing" bonus to the extras to be available if AEW needs them(but they can work elsewhere if not). All in all, it's a decent situation for them to be in with the world the way it is and work elsewhere drying up..

[DavidB6937]

1 hour ago, Chili said:

While we're at it with the lasses, Tay Conti is absolutely stunning isn't she. How is she ever gonna do a spell as a villain with that face?

There was far more to her as a heel in NXT than there was as a face. I'm glad she's sticking with it in AEW. She seems more confident in the role in that direction.

[Mr Butternut Squash]

I maintain that Cody's "I'll never challenge for the world championship again" stipulation is the stupidest thing they've ever done and I can't wait until they walk it back. That whole segment with Jade Cargill was a bloated mess and typical Codymania running wild. Saying that, I find it hard to care about it either way to be honest. I can't shake the feeling that Shaq is going to drop out and it's gonna go nowhere. 

Good Dynamite for what was essentially a glorified episode of Dark. Customary bad, overambitious women's match aside, all the in-ring stuff was really good. The violence in the Bunkhouse match and Penta vs Fenix felt unearned, but they ended up clicking anyway and were fun wild brawls. Cage vs Sydal was a cool little exhibition match for both. Sky and Spears was fine for what it was even if both are completely uninteresting right now. 

The Inner Circle/MJF stuff is a riot and the best thing they've been involved in in ages. It's funny, I thought MJF and Jericho respectively drained the life out of Moxley and Orange Cassidy during their feuds. But put them together and they're fucking gold. MJF and Sammy are electric together too, with Guevara already showing good babyface range. The interplay between all seven guys is a joy to watch and it's the biggest hook the show's had in ages. Unlike the stuff between The Elite guys I'm gripped by the possibilities and how it will all play out. This picture says it all.

[Supremo]

I still went MJF to eventually stage a coup and for all of the Inner Circle to turn and then feud with Jericho, but watching them this week? There is absolutely no rush. I’ll happily take six months to a year of them being a bunch of whacky pricks. I wonder if they go to Vegas and everything is shut due to Covid? Or they end up crashing Miro’s stag do?

Penta, Fenix and Proud and Powerful all getting more spotlight gets a big thumbs up from me. All of them have felt under-utilised for ages.

[Lenin]

Completely forgot about the Cody stipulation. That does need to be walked back at some point, makes very little sense. 

Jericho and MJF are gold. I honestly had my reservations about Jericho going into AEW a year ago but he's consistently delivered in and out of the ring. Looking forward to the next wacky turn. 

[DavidB6937]

Jericho has to be up there with the best signings of any company ever if I'm honest. To think of what AEW would be without him.. it's crazy.

[Supremo]

Having finally found the time to finish it, I can confidently say that the main event saved this show.

It was everything I love about AEW. Belting in-ring action combined with loads of brilliant story-telling. Pentagon and Fenix violently attacking each other’s masks, Big Tony shit-stirring at the desk, Kingston being phenomenal and wildly entertaining bickering with the announcers and feigning innocence, all the, “he’s my best friend!” stuff, then him kicking Fenix out of the ring. And this is all before Pac comes out looking the business.

In one segment they set up about ten different directions they could go in and about six to nine months worth of potential storylines and matches. Really top drawer stuff. I also think Kingston has now overtaken Jericho in becoming the best guest announcer they’ve got. He’s quick as fuck and reacts to everything tremendously. Even the way he was improvising when Excalibur got the names mixed up. It was perfect. The guy is a fucking diamond. No-one they’ve signed has delivered more.

EDIT: Jericho has posted this photo on Instagram and I absolutely adore it.

I could go for at least a year of them travelling together and always taking the same photo, MJF, Jericho and Santana having the time of their lives wherever they are, Sammy and Ortiz looking miserable, and Hager and Wardlow always ready to kill each other.

AEW is a very good pro-wrestling company.

Edited November 14, 2020 by Supremo

[CavemanLynn]

That is a stonking photo.

They've got two angles running that have effortlessly involved FOURTEEN wrestlers, simply and logically, despite both being versions of a stable split. You've got the sneaky young pup trying to worm his way in by palling up with the big dog, vs the old leader coming back to sort out the chaos wrought by an intruder in his gang while he was forced to stay away. It's brilliant, carried by personalities and human reactions rather than win-loss records or (obvious) PPV match box ticking. The number of match combos, potential mini feuds, twists and turns is mind boggling, and the right kind of tension. Nothing feels inevitable or predictable, or unnecessary. It's fantastic.