5 Biggest Takeaways from vAEW Dynamite(December 1st, 2021)
I like to keep things as positive as possible.
I like WWE.
I like AEW.
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Well, here we are. It took me a while to get to this point but I have officially become an AEW guy. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve watched plenty of AEW since it’s inception but it wasn’t until recently that I was able to really dive in and give it my full attention. What better time to take over as the takeaways guy for Dynamite than now, the era of “Cowboy Shit!”
Last night’s episode started off really hot. The first 30 minutes were stacked and did a fantastic job at bringing the viewer in and grabbing their attention. The opening match and segment with Bryan Danielson was damn near perfect, with Bryan showing the world what a true heel is all about. It’s not just about insults and crapping on the audience. Brutality on the baby face, disrespect to all parties involved and truly not giving one single fu… well you know. How would they follow that up? By doing a quick Miro promo(straight fire!) and then following up the “best segment of the last 20 years” from last week with a good CM Punk match/MJF on commentary and another promo between the two. This is how you start a show. Give the fans exactly what they want and then sprinkle in some more good stuff throughout the rest of the show. End it with an exciting match/angle, which they did with a brutal flaming table spot between Cody and Andrade, and that is a formula that will work every time. There were some weird choices here and there, but not enough for the show to be considered a mess. So with that said, we shall move right into the 5 biggest takeaways from AEW Dynamite!
5. Team Taz
You would think a stable of promising talent lead by a veteran who can run his mouth like Taz would be a no brainer, smash hit. And at first, it was. Taz, Cage and Starks was a nice trio that never truly got a chance to evolve into something better before they start making additions. Before you know it, Brian Cage is getting the boot with Hobbs being added to the team and Hook doing whatever it is that Hook does. Just recently, they may or may not have made the addition of Dante Martin with Ricky Starks seemingly being the leader. It is a complete mess at this point and it seems as if there is no real direction. Just adding members for the sake of getting them on television.
Well I think it is time to pull the plug on this group. Ricky Starks is a star waiting to happen. Willie Hobbs is a star waiting to happen. Dante Martin is a star waiting to happen. And usually that isn’t a problem but when your faction is struggling to get on tv and even when they are, no impact is being made? That’s a problem. Team Taz has been around long enough for them to be established as a powerhouse, but it just hasn’t happened so there is no reason to believe it will now. Free Ricky Starks and let him be a braggadocious heel and get over on the mic. Let Powerhouse Hobbs start running through anyone and everyone that gets in his way, much like Miro as he rises through the ranks. And let Dante Martin just wrestle! He’s new to the group, so he hasn’t been hampered yet but if history tells us anything about this group, it will only be a matter of time before his Dynamite air time becomes damn near extinct.
4. Britt a Hayter?
The Britt Baker trio hasn’t had a lengthy run so far and it doesn’t look like it will be lasting much longer. Britt had the stooge with Rebel at her side, but she needed someone to do the heavy lifting for her. Enter Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker’s muscle. With Hayter’s look, size and ability, we all should have known this wasn’t going to last very long. The pairing is very similar to the MJF & Wardlow partnership, only Britt isn’t paying Hayter. So splitting them up so soon seemed very likely and here we are. After last week, the tension continued to build as Britt took a shot at Jamie(referencing her loss in the tournament) and then Jamie taking a shot of her own. Britt tried to sweep it under the rug and say everything is fine, but it’s clear that that’s not the case. How much longer does Jamie stick around in this arrangement that does nothing for her? Well, Winter is Coming and we all know that revenge is a dish best served cold. Expect Jamie Hayter versus Britt Baker to be a hot feud leading into the New Year.
3. MJF v Punk: Round 2
How do you follow up the absolute magic that these two put out last week? Honestly, you can’t. It was as close to perfection as perfection can get. They would try though and had last week not been so damn good, this week wouldn’t have come across as the letdown that some are saying it was. The chirping last week was that “they referenced WWE too much!” Okay, weird argument but let’s see what happens when they move away from that. MJF delivered more scathing shots at Punk during the match on commentary and then on the microphone after the match. The “Cooks Meth” shot, referencing Punk talking about Britt Baker a lot and more PG Punk shots are just some of what Maxwell gave us last night. You can hate the depths Maxwell is willing to go all you want but that’s what he does and he does it so damn good. Punk was rather pedestrian in his responses this week and even allowed Max to get under his skin towards the end when MJF threatened Punk’s pup. Max wins round two, but I have a feeling next week Punk will have a little something up his sleeve for MJF in his hometown of Long Island.
2. TBS Title Tournament
Thunder Rosa. Nyla Rose. Ruby Soho. Jade Cargill.
With the women’s division being visibly better than it was a year ago, how can you not be excited about the final four of this tournament? 2 heels and 2 babyfaces going at it for the newest shiny toy, the TBS Title. Soho and Rose will be a very compelling matchup that will show how far Ruby is willing to go to get the win against a bigger and stronger opponent like Nyla. Thunder Rosa is arguably one of the top 3 women wrestlers in the world today. She will have her hands full in two major ways here though.
1, Jade is still very green and it will be completely on Rosa to carry this match to something the fans can enjoy.
2, Jade is a physical specimen that can manhandle anyone in the women’s division.
It will be very fun to see what kind of match Thunder Rosa will be able to construct as she tries to get one step closer to gold in AEW. The next 2 weeks will be very fun as we head into the Winter is Coming event and the culmination of this tournament will have reached its end. With some great matches already in the bag, you can definitely expect these last 3 to deliver in a big way.
1. Heel 101; Your Instructor? Bryan Danielson
Like a light switch, Bryan Danielson was able to flip from babyface to heel. He didn’t need cheap heat. He didn’t need to turn on a friend. He just told it like it is and BOOM, he’s the best heel in the entire company. We all love watching Bryan work in the ring, he’s exceptional when it comes to wrestling. The only real change he made during this transformation is how he attacks his opponents. Instead of it becoming a competition between two individuals to see who is the better combatant, he now wants to hurt you. He wants to brutalize anybody that dare think they belong in the same ring with him. He’s better than everyone, and he knows it. Whether it be knocking out Colt’s tooth and using it later to celebrate his victory like he did last week or having Alan Angels beaten, but then deciding that he wasn’t finished tormenting him before kicking his head in this week. It’s heel work 101, and there are quite a few people in the industry that could learn from this. It’s not very often you see a man of Bryan Danielson’s size coming across as a guy you fear stepping in the ring with, but here we are. Sure, the babyface will play the part and act tough but once that bell rings and you look across the ring at the madman that is Danielson, the fear sinks in. I can’t speak enough praise on how good Bryan’s heel work is and I am very much looking forward to the direction he takes this new side of himself in the next few weeks.
There we have it, the Drip King’s first 5 takeaways on Dynamite. I can assure you the breakdown of each show will get better as I become more comfortable with the product but I look forward to hearing feedback from everyone. Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments, I enjoy a good back and forth squabble. If not, I will see you all again next week.
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