SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
The following is a write-up of the first two hours of AEW Dynamite from Wednesday.
HITS
OSPREAY-FLETCHER GO HOME
This was fantastic. It was long, but it was fantastic.
Full Gear needed a compelling main event and this 25 minute in-ring promo showed fans this is far more than a match between two of the best wrestlers in the game right now. They added personal stakes and hurt feelings and I was riveted the entire time.
A couple of years ago, I remember writing or mentioning in the AECC Podcast that I felt Will Ospreay was losing too many matches. We all knew he was the future, but he was getting pinned too often. In the case of building to this main event, one of those losses has aged perfectly. It helps Kyle Fletcher’s character to have a victory over Ospreay for his overconfidence to make sense.
Fletcher has impressed me so much with his heel mannerisms and ability to get the crowd against him. He was great a couple of weeks ago in his match with Jack Perry and was masterful in this promo getting deafening boos and chants. I would only put MJF ahead of him in the company right now when it comes to that ability.
Ospreay had a slow start to his promo, but he really turned it up and did a great job as the babyface champion. As a contrast to Fletcher, he let the fans know how much they mean to him and how fired up he gets when they chant his name. I enjoyed the callback to All In and Fletcher’s appearance during Ospreay’s epic entrance.
Fletcher’s final words were perfect, admitting jealousy, but wanting to take everything from Ospreay and then making it personal by bringing up his wife and son. This added much-needed heat to what was a near-perfect go-home world championship promo.
MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS VS. FTR – MATCH 5
A best of five, or best of seven series can be very tough. It’s the same matchup so many times in such a short amount of time that it can get boring. This series has been great. I have loved every match and was surprised they decided to have match five on Dynamite instead of the PPV. Oh, I thought, they’ll find a way to have a disputed finish so they can do it again on Saturday night.
The match was wild. The fans were into it from start to finish. The near-falls were really well executed and when Justin Roberts began announcing the time left, it seemed clear that we were not going to get a winner. They did an amazing job making you think it was going to be a draw, and then for the Machine Guns to win clean with seconds to go, it got the reaction I’m sure they were hoping it would.
It was also a nice touch to have both teams show respect afterwards. It did not need an attack by FTR. I’m looking forward to a MCMG vs. Young Bucks title match in the near future!
CIAMPA VS. SPEEDBALL
The amazing string of great wrestling continued into the main event of the Dynamite portion of the show. The crowd in Salt Lake City was not worn out as, once again, they were into this match from start to finish.
The chemistry between these two was off the charts. Both guys pulled off some amazing spots and the near falls late in the match were wild. They certainly tried to keep Speedball as strong as possible in defeat as he showed resilience only seen by Darby Allin. This is the Ciampa that I’ve wanted to see from the start and while there are still questions about his character and where he should be slotted, I think he’s in a very good spot right now.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Post-show covering the latest episode of Dynamite: CLICK HERE (or search “wade keller” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
QUICK HITS
– I liked Adam Copeland’s lockeroom speech after Blood & Guts last week that they showed at the top of the show. Ospreay is a younger competitive guy and when you put him with Darby and Steven Borden, you have a group of wrestlers who aren’t thinking long term and can be reckless. It makes perfect sense that Copeland, who sees himself as a mentor, is trying to protect them from themselves. It’s a nice way to start a storyline between the two men who will certainly meet in the ring in the near future.
– The New Level vs. Brodido tag match was fine and did a good job setting up the Texas Death Match for Full Gear. “Hangman” Adam Page’s impassioned interview backstage added more emotion to the story. I am still having a hard time getting over the poor way they got New Level to be this angry just one week after explaining how much they liked Page & Brodido and had no interest in a hardcore match. It still makes no sense to me that Bandido would attack Kofi. All of that said, I can’t wait for this match on Saturday and I’m sure it’s going to be memorable!
– I like that AEW is keeping Persephone strong after her TBS Title loss. She is an asset to the top of that card. The only tweek I would make with her right now is eliminating the temper tantrums inside the ring during the matches. She should show frustration and anger after losing the TBS title, but the screaming in the middle of matches is a bit much. I love what she did after the match at the commentary table where she was losing it, but held it together and talked to herself. That was great.
QUICK MISSES
– Andrade said that the National Title means so much to him and yet he apparently has no interest in getting a rematch with Tomasso Ciampa to win it back saying when one door closes, another opens (in regard to the World Title shot he has). Why is the National Title door closed?
– As for Ciampa, the match with Ilya Dragunov should be very good, but as a fan of Ciampa, I think he’s stuck in tweener-land as the fans like him and want to cheer for him, but he still carries himself as a heel. Dragunov is still an enigma with not a lot of character development at this stage. I hope we can get a deep dive into what he’s all about so he can be more than just a talented in-ring guy.
– Brody King saying he doesn’t believe in god in Utah is a choice! That’s a Utah heel turn if I ever heard it.
Please also check out the weekly free podcast I’m part of, “The All Elite Conversation Club” that drops on Fridays on the PWTorch Dailycast lineup. Joel Dehnel and I have a great time breaking down all things AEW and we will preview Full Gear this week. Search “pwtorch” on your podcast app to subscribe. Send questions and comments to allelitecc@gmail.com.
