AEW Dynamite Thread 2023

[Supremo]

3 hours ago, Fatty Facesitter said:

 

👍 Cassidy/Garcia - I’m running out of superlatives when it comes to that freshly squeezed beautiful bastard. Transitioning his comedy material to become more psychology based is something that I think we all take for granted, because it was actually quite a risky move and direction to take - if it goes wrong and goes too much the other way, you risk killing the appealing factors that made him so popular in the first place. Not only have they absolutely nailed it, but it’s made him an even better act, and James Cipperly the performer has evolved to the point where he has become when of the very best acts in the entire business, not just from a character perspective, but also between the ropes. Sells like a trooper as well - as if we needed any more reasons to adore the handsome bastard. He's so, so, so fucking good and the main reason I absolutely had to book a ticket for All In at Wembley - I'm a massive, massive, massive fan. This title run is just such a wonderful thing. By the way, Garcia held his own here too - I love his shithousing ways with the crowd and his daft hip swirls and I think the lad can go. Good match, good shit, good times. Did I mention I think Orange Cassidy is quite good? 

One hundred percent this. Orange Cassidy is the best wrestler in the world right now.

Starts every match with clever, funny house show spots, sucks you in with some fantastic selling, then hits the feel-good ending when you’re absolutely gripped and convinced this is where he finally loses. Guaranteed belter ever single time.

He’s so obviously one of AEW’s greatest success stories that I’m starting to think he’d be the ideal opponent for Wembley against MJF. The two biggest homegrown stars. Title for title. I’d lose my mind.

I haven’t even considered buying a pro-wrestling T-shirt in about thirty years because pro-wrestling T-shirts are invariably shit. But if they’re selling an Orange Cassidy shirt in London? It’s a limp thumbs up from me.

[textonly]

3 hours ago, Fatty Facesitter said:

Jungle Boy is giving it the “I just want to be the best professional wrestler I can be” verbiage and complaining about MJF and how he conducts himself…and they’ve shot Perry’s interview next to a massive swimming pool. It’s an odd juxtaposition when you're trying to build someone up as babyface with a sort of 'he's one of your own!' mentality. Don't get me wrong, he's earned his pennies and he can spend on it on what he likes, good on him - it's more how AEW have shot and edited this particular piece that I'm critiquing.

I've not watched AEW much in the past few months, so I don't know how the characters may have shifted in that time, but yeah... that Jungle Boy promo screamed "impending heel turn" to me. Looked like a bit of a rich prick, had Christian speaking for him, talked about how Christian taught him how cold the world could be: if that's not the vibe they were going for, they need to be careful. It's all too easy to lose the shine off a babyface. Also agree about Darby's comment being crass and tone-deaf. Although, did he say dollar store toilets? I guess that's a haunting image.

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Fatty Facesitter said:

 

👎 Pillars promos (Jungle Boy) - A few nitpicky bits from me. Jungle Boy is giving it the “I just want to be the best professional wrestler I can be” verbiage and complaining about MJF and how he conducts himself…and they’ve shot Perry’s interview next to a massive swimming pool. It’s an odd juxtaposition when you're trying to build someone up as babyface with a sort of 'he's one of your own!' mentality. Don't get me wrong, he's earned his pennies and he can spend on it on what he likes, good on him - it's more how AEW have shot and edited this particular piece that I'm critiquing. Also, Christian Cage praising him after they’ve been feuding?  

👎

Given a massive percentage of houses in America have a pool, and he’s the son of a Famous actor, they hardly had him doing Million Dollar man skits here. Nitpicky as you admit 

[Hannibal Scorch]

27 minutes ago, Louch said:

Given a massive percentage of houses in America have a pool, and he’s the son of a Famous actor, they hardly had him doing Million Dollar man skits here. Nitpicky as you admit 

To add to that I believe he lives in California which is almost a guarantee for there to be a pool. But I recognised it as where Luchasauraus filmed his skits a few years ago for BTE. Anyway, besides that agreed with almost all your review @Fatty Facesitter so well done on another cracking round up.

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Hannibal Scorch said:

To add to that I believe he lives in California which is almost a guarantee for there to be a pool. But I recognised it as where Luchasauraus filmed his skits a few years ago for BTE. Anyway, besides that agreed with almost all your review @Fatty Facesitter so well done on another cracking round up.

Is it not Also the garden the Arquette doc showed him training in with the ring under the tree? 

[Supremo]

I was so confused by the new Trios Rules. Hearing the rules last week, I thought, "Dealer's Choice," was in regards to the DQ rule, meaning the challengers could decide whether it was No DQ or not. I'm convinced I saw a semi-colon! "DQ; Dealer's Choice." But then on this show, it seemed otherwise. It seemed every match had disqualifications enforced and the challengers could maybe just add whatever extra rule they wanted?! Fuck's sake. For as much as they've mostly tightened up on production, it's so bush league that your TV show can't even explain its own internal rules and I have to search on fucking Twitter to determine whats going on. Anyway, Buddy Murphy saves the day, probably aware of what a confusing mess it is;

 

So the Challengers can just add whatever rule they want. What a load of nonsense. Who doesn't everyone make their rule, "no goths can win." Or given Chuck Taylor's history, he should've gone with, "Chainsaws are legal for Best Friend members." House of Black remain the most frustrating act in the business. Bunch of absolute killers who can't help themselves from being e-fed idiots. The definition of one step forward, two steps back.

It's quite fitting that such TNA-style bollocks was accompanied by TNA-style lighting, where they're all out there wrestling in pitch black darkness, making you assume nobody's in attendance. I hated it so much. If any challengers have any pride in their craft, particularly guys who do dives or brawling outside, their Dealer's Choice rule should be, "turn the fucking lights on, you knob-heads"

Awful.

[Hannibal Scorch]

5 minutes ago, Supremo said:

I was so confused by the new Trios Rules. Hearing the rules last week, I thought, "Dealer's Choice," was in regards to the DQ rule, meaning the challengers could decide whether it was No DQ or not. I'm convinced I saw a semi-colon! "DQ; Dealer's Choice." But then on this show, it seemed otherwise. It seemed every match had disqualifications enforced and the challengers could maybe just add whatever extra rule they wanted?! Fuck's sake. For as much as they've mostly tightened up on production, it's so bush league that your TV show can't even explain its own internal rules and I have to search on fucking Twitter to determine whats going on. Anyway, Buddy Murphy saves the day, probably aware of what a confusing mess it is;

 

So the Challengers can just add whatever rule they want. What a load of nonsense. Who doesn't everyone make their rule, "no goths can win." Or given Chuck Taylor's history, he should've gone with, "Chainsaws are legal for Best Friend members." House of Black remain the most frustrating act in the business. Bunch of absolute killers who can't help themselves from being e-fed idiots. The definition of one step forward, two steps back.

It's quite fitting that such TNA-style bollocks was accompanied by TNA-style lighting, where they're all out there wrestling in pitch black darkness, making you assume nobody's in attendance. I hated it so much. If any challengers have any pride in their craft, particularly guys who do dives or brawling outside, their Dealer's Choice rule should be, "turn the fucking lights on, you knob-heads"

Awful.

It was explained again before the match, pretty clearly and again before Chucky T banned witches from Ringside. As for the lighting I thought for the gimmick it was the opposite of what WWE Achieved with the Fiend's red light matches. You could actually see what was going on and thought it worked. 

[Nick James]

All alternative lighting throughout matches is shit, regardless of the shade. 

[mim731]

I'd like to see the screwdriver stabbing thing retired now. It's a bit too "real world weapon" for pro wrestling, for me at least. I feel like wrestling exists in a bubble of suspension of disbelief and I appreciate that there's a logic to why it's been used here, but continuing to utilise it feels a bit like breaking that bubble.

Losing a match by being stabbed in the head just feels a bit off to me (and again I appreciate it's part of a larger story etc, I just wasn't a fan). 

[neil is brill]

Those house rules are a bit naff, ain’t they.

Especially the count out one. “We don’t want you to run away. So here’s more time to run away.”

Also, rule 4. “Hi chaps, we challengers have decided that if you do not defeat us within the 2 second time limit, we win the titles.”

Edited May 11, 2023 by neil is brill

[Infinity Land]

5 hours ago, Fatty Facesitter said:

 

👎 Miro/Thunder Rosa returning to little fanfare to knock on Tony's door for a chinwag? Poor way to re-introduce them for me - you've got the potential there to really build those up for when Collision begins, or even when you bring them back to Dynamite. Cut both of these little backstage interactions, find a minute or so of time from somewhere else and you could have given Cesaro a proper entrance for instance. Calm the fuck down Tony, there's a good lad.

Honestly didn't mind this so much. There to tee up the announcement for the new show.  They've a string of "surprise" returns and NJPW arrivals still to come. And we've just seen the likes of Jay White and Roderick Strong debut to mixed reactions.

Miro got the desired reaction from me since he's been gone so long. Thunder Rosa felt more like balancing Miro out with some women's division representation. It was only at the weekend she was talking she might need surgery.

[LaGoosh]

On 5/10/2023 at 4:21 PM, WeeAl said:

I also think Daniel Garcia has a ways to go. He fucking wishes Daddy Magic and Cool Hand Ang were is daddies, then he would have some of their charisma.

I absolutely love Daniel Garcia. The fact that he's only been in the business 4 years is pretty crazy. He's an excellent wrestler, doesn't have bad matches, is a better promo than you'd expect and absolutely understands character work and how to build that into matches. For all the talk of the Four Pillars I think Garcia actually has better long term potential than Allin, Jungle Boy and Guevara. He's only 24 but he gets it and the only way is up.

His match this week with Cassidy was brilliant. Like others have said Cassidy is the best wrestler in the world right now. One of the big selling points of AEW over WWE for me personally is that the best matches in AEW tell the story through the wrestling itself. All the top WWE matches I've seen in the past few years mostly seem to have no story in the match itself until the finish or the wrestlers basically do soliloquys throughout the match shouting the story out to the viewer. Orange Cassidy is a fucking master at telling a story within a match solely by his actions and selling and how he adapts his act each week to different wrestlers styles. 

Across his title reign Cassidy is also telling a longer story of being gradually worn down and having to find new ways to win. Early defenses were won with the Orange Punch or Beach Break but as he's getting slowly ground down each defense he's relying more on surprise flash pins to win and each week he's selling more and more, he's getting closer to losing, more desperation offense and just looking increasingly exhausted. It's beautiful to watch.

[The King Of Swing]

With some tightening I think the Open House rules could be a lot of fun but yeah a bit of a mess out of the gate. 

Brodie King is a wonderful hoss.

I thought the no holds barred match was rubbish. Sure they tried but Julia is stll clearly nowhere near TV ready imo and I think she might have actually been hurt for real. 

Aussie Open Guy No.1. MEH. 

Awesome main event with a very welcome swerve from Don.

Very good show. 

[Merzbow]

Yeah a very solid show but that main event brought it right up to something special, Mox and Kenny are on a completely different level and especially when against each other.

I don't expect Don to be on the BCC's side or anything, Bryan wasn't lying when he said he had no idea. He's got a new son, bruv.

[The King Of Swing]

Two silly little highlights for me were Don puffing his chest out and Mox flexing, post match. 

Love dumb shit like that.