Performance Review – AEW Dynamite (8/12/20)

Overall Evaluation and Achieved Goals

Even on a quiet show headlined by a turd of a Chris Jericho performance, Dynamite still has enough going on up-and-down the card now that it can cruise by.

Having faith the acts on the show are in a position to succeed helps, but this is just a different approach to wrestling while also staying true to wrestling. It’s just nice to watch a wrestling program where the people (and dinos) seem real, the jokes land, and I don’t feel like an accessory to murder for some reason.

Areas of Excellence Within Performance

This was Tag Team Appreciation Night, highlighted by an in-ring promo towards the end of the show with The Rock & Roll Express going back-and-forth with Tully & Arn. FTR and The Bucks might want to matter more but there was a lot to like here, mainly seeing a Tully FUCKING Blanchard promo on national television but also JR bringing out a classic “no god damnit no!” and Ricky by god Morton taking a stuff piledriver. It’s horrifying to know we lost two decades of on-screen Arn Anderson promos.

AEW will talk up the grandpas, but they also put over their current stars. They finally have a real crew of up-and-comers outside of the big two stables that are all being presented appropriately as future stars: Orange, MJF, Darby, Starks – that’s a crew. Their various feuds are fun to watch and so is the development.

Every few months I’ve got to give a shout out the over-the-top smiling Cody intro with his entire family plus random entourage members behind him, flames and flag flying high. This is big top babyface AND top heel at the same time energy and it is fun to watch, more fun than the wrestling matches actually. I liked the match with Scorpio Sky but it was basically a decent version of the Big Cody Match, which for better or worse is the most serviceable thing going in wrestling.

The MJF material is lame, but I support surrounding him with a big entourage like Cody to make him seem like a big deal. Also really liked Jon Moxley‘s BMF walk this week too. The MJF/Moxley feud has not been a total winner and they definitely missed a couple angles to kick it off but these two kind of rule no matter what right now.

Big fan of AEW pushing that 18-49 demo but also straight-up making a serious play for the MOM demo, first with Santana & Ortiz attacking Trent’s Mom’s Van and now them BLEACHING CLOTHES. I am almost positive we are getting an angle around scrapbooking next week.

I thought The Young Bucks vs. The Dark Order tag was a nice preview of a bigger match down the line, something like that.

Suggested Areas of Improvement

For the moment, AEW might have a heel problem. Their big tall heels (Cage, Archer, Lee) are rebounding after big losses, while despite expanding into other rivalries The Inner Circle is beginning to wave its’ dick in the wind. Thankfully AEW doesn’t have a roster problem, as you can turn one or two guys and the problem is solved.

Also, maybe one or tow less AEW World Tag Team Title matches? I get wanting to work, but yeesh.

Orange Cassidy vs. Chris Jericho in a $7,000 Obligation Match stunk. Their last match was awesome, like legitimate actual great match awesome, but here the JUICE seemed gone and Jericho appeared to be working off at least two hangovers. His use of a BOOT to take over on offense should’ve been a tip-off, but him then going on to screw up pretty much any spot they tried was a bummer. Even if Orange won, nobody got put over.

My Favorite Things

3. That Scorpio Sky kickout where he lifted his legs instead of his arm
2. The fact that AEW now says referee’s names out loud (Mike Chioda!) and that you know Jericho is all smug about it
1. Tully Blanchard promos

Official Star Rating

3.5 out of 5 Stars

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