AEW Dynamite starts off strong

When the overnight ratings cascaded in Thursday we learned that more than 1.4 million people tuned in to the inaugural AEW Dynamite show. NXT drew 800,000 on the USA Network. I think what helped AEW is that people tuned in out of curiosity and the fact that NXT could be seen the next day on the WWE Network in its entirety. And a lot of your “smart marks” are the kinds of fans that AEW is appealing to. “Something different” is the best moniker I would describe it as. Personally, I watched the entire show and did not flip over to USA once. Not discounting my love for WWE, but it was refreshing to watch an alternative to “Vinnie Mac TV” that we have never seen before. Will I channel flip next week or in the coming weeks? Maybe.

I am not going to go in detail on every match, but touch on some high points. Cody Rhodes and Sammy Guevara had an exciting match with many near falls. Both kicking out of each others finishers and the scantily clad Brandi Rhodes even took a bump. Post match I marked out when AEW World Champion Chris Jericho attacked him, setting the tone for their 4-5 week long feud culminating in their championship match at Full Gear on November 9. Good kickoff to their feud and the angle was very well done.

MJF vs Brandon Cutler was establishing MJF as a top heel in the company. MJF is excellent on the mic and of course cheated to win because that is what heels do. I look for his stock to rise in the weeks/months to come.

SCU consisting of Scorpio Sky, Frankie Kazarian, and Christopher Daniels cut a promo on Washington, DC with an Obama impression by Sky. They were interrupted by the Lucha Brothers (Pentagon and Fenix) to give some hype to the tag team division. This led to a brawl which will presumably go to a tag match with this group down the road.

PAC (Neville in WWE) vs Hangman Page. Another very good match with both competitors trading blows through this hard hitting bout. I forgot longtime official Earl Hebner was hired by AEW and was the referee in this match. I thought this might go to a time limit draw since Hangman Page already has a loss in the company and that is something AEW is stressing that they want to be different than WWE. However, Neville hit the black arrow splash followed by the neutralizer submission and got the nod after 15 minutes. That makes PAC 2-0 with wins over both Hangman Page and Kenny Omega. Perhaps he will be in line for a title shot heading into 2020?

Riho vs Nyla Rose was next for the vacant AEW women’s title. I was not familiar with either women, but were impressed by both. Britt Baker was on commentary (I would imagine she faces the winner) kind of as an acknowledgment to her being the first woman signed by AEW. She is also the girl friend of WWE NXT Champion Adam Cole. Riho was considerably smaller and lighter than Rose but sold well throughout the match and hit a northern lights suplex towards the finish. Riho ended up getting the win with a double knees to the face after 14 minutes.

The man event pitted a 6 man tag match with AEW Champion Chris Jericho, Santana, and Ortiz vs Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks. This was an angle more than a match. No one will recall who won, but they will remember Jon Moxley creeping up behind Omega during the match which led to them brawling throughout the arena. They went to a “lounge area” where Moxley hit a DDT on Omega through a glass table. Jericho ended up hitting the Judas effect finisher on Matt Jackson for the pin, but after the heels began beating on the babyfaces (they were outnumbered with Omega out) Cody Rhodes came out to make the save. Sammy Guevara then entered delivering a low blow to Cody. Consequently, Dustin Rhodes ran in cleaning house. Finally, Jake Hager (Jack Swagger in WWE) appeared to the biggest pop of the night clearing the ring and aligning himself with Jericho, Santana, Ortiz, and Guevara. The show went off the air with the heel stable standing tall and a close up of Hager.

Final Outlook on AEW

Was it a great show? No. Was it a good show? Yes. What I liked about it was that it was something different. A nice mix of veteran guys/gals that we know and some up and coming talent that will be fun in getting to know. For now, AEW has 2 hours of television time per week. You won’t see everyone on a weekly basis, so will keep everything fresh. Not to mention AEW will not cannibalize their talent. When you see the champion or top talent it will feel special. The first few shows being done in larger arenas the performers are presented more “big time” and certainly as stars. I read on one of the blogs this week that after being defeated this week WWE will be looking to move NXT out of Full Sail. That would not surprise me since Vinnie Mac hates to lose a war.

What would I do differently? Give it a different look. It was too Nitro and Raw for me. Have the “good guys” and “bad guys” enter through separate areas. Have a time limit draw every once in awhile. Perhaps provide a running tally of wins/losses so it feels more like sports. Do some locker room interviews like Mean Gene used to do in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Maybe provide some more background/credentials on some of the wrestlers that the common fan may not be familiar with. Keep in mind a great number of viewers were not around for the “Monday Night Wars.” That was 18 1/2 years ago (hard to believe and makes me feel old).

In closing, it was refreshing to see a something different. It doesn’t translate to better. It will be interesting to see in the weeks/months to follow how each company jockeys for viewers. Either way, should be a fun ride. Thanks for reading.