AEW DYNAMITE HITS & MISSES (8/19): Did Omega and Ospreay deliver in their face-to-face, did Jay White and Moxley earn its TV time, did the Okada promo make sense, more

HITS

OMEGA AND OSPREAY SIT DOWN INTERVIEW

Damn! Where has this Kenny Omega been for the past 7 years? I was blown away by his performance in that interview. He was super serious from start to finish. There were no wasted words. He did not raise his voice at any point and got his point across crystal clear. Everything he said was said by someone with the utmost confidence and a huge ego. He knew just where to poke at Will Ospreay’s confidence and those mind games were successful in getting Ospreay riled up. He said nothing insulting the entire time until the end with one parting shot about Ospreay’s step-son. This was a masterclass in being a confident, arrogant champion.

As for Ospreay, the passion was there on his end. He is playing the underdog role well and that his tainted victory in 2023 still eats at him. He has a lot to prove and most fans will want to see him accomplish his lifelong dream in less than two weeks in front of his country.

This was a home run segment.

JON MOXLEY VS. JAY WHITE

This had a big match feel from the start. The crowd was into it and Mox and White delivered one hell of a wrestling match. It’s this type of performance that I’ve missed seeing from White after he’s battled so many injuries over the past few years. He can and should be a main event guy.

Both guys did a great job taking us all on a ride where I could actually have seen (and was kind of wishing for) an upset win by White. My only issue was that we were robbed time to appreciate the match due to the post-match run-ins.

The post-match was interesting and a bit overproduced with so many teams running out to help, but it did set up some sort of match-to-be-announced for the Trios Titles. I do like that with Brodido & “Hangman” Adam Page as champs; they are making those titles more of a focus.

WILLOW AND MERCEDES PULL APART

While the interview did not live up to the fellas, this segment was also very well done and the physicality brought a different feel to what the men did earlier. Both Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Mone continue to do a great job with their words and their fists. This was one of the better pull-apart brawls I’ve seen in a while. They both were very aggressive in trying to get at each other and it made me really want to see them go at it at All In, which is the goal!

QUICK HITS

– The opening six-man tag match did a solid job to start the show. The fans were into Will Ospreay and his United Empire pals. There was good action, but putting Rocky Romero into a match right now is just a joke. They’ve made him into a 1980s jobber where he has no credibility. He’s there to take pins and do something silly in a serious match right before he gets destroyed.

– There wasn’t a lot to it, but I liked the Kazuchika Okada backstage interview with Renee Paquette because he was serious, he made sense, he spoke clear English, and he did not use the word “bitch.”

– Kyle Fletcher did a solid job in his promo setting up the return of Konosuke Takeshita, who received a great reaction from the crowd. This is one of the Top 4 matches for All-In and this was a nice way to start the hype for what could be a show-stealer at Wembley.

– There were a few rough moments, but the TBS Title 4-way match was a fun time. I really thought Persephone continues to stand out with her in-ring skill and personality. Maya World is still coming along and I hope pinning Kris Statlander will start a much-needed heel turn or character change for Kris? I still say joining the Death Riders would give her character a fresh start.

– The “Destruction of Jonathan Cruz” segment was enjoyable while being short and sweet. Andrade got to show some passion and MJF got to insult the good people of Baltimore from his pool.

– Nigel McGuiness and Hechicero told a good story in their match, but assuming Nigel’s injury is legitimate, it doesn’t make much sense for his run to continue after the semi-finals. He will get to perform in the UK next week, which should be a very cool moment for him.

– Kevin Knight did a great job taking out Darby Allin to get more heat for their match at All- In. Knight looked and sounded confident. This is yet another match that should be wild at Wembley.

– The main event was solid, but not spectacular. It’s always fun to see The Elite in action. The post-match was a lot. Omega’s antics were a little too cute for me, though. I liked the earlier version from the interview rather than trying to go heel like he did in an overly cute way. Ospreay was very good being pissed off and wanting a piece of Omega.

ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…

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QUICK MISSES

– It’s not something that’ll keep me up at night, but the producers at AEW seem to have issues communicating at times. Within an hour, Fletcher is in the ring and announces that Takeshita is not there and then, surprise, he’s there! Then, Cruz announces that Andrade is not there, and surprise, he’s there! This is an old wrestling staple that is used too much anyway and certainly it’s used too much when it’s twice on the same show. It’s something that should be addressed and fixed for the future.

– Again, this does not ruin anything for me, but I would have waited until next week to have Omega put Ospreay through the table. The tension provided by the sit down interview was enough for me for this week.

– Please no more “accidental” friendly fire between Cope/Christian and The Young Bucks. There has to be a better way to add some juice to that match than that old cliche.

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