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AEW Dynamite - 1/11/2023


The Natural

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Magical television! Wild Thing! The great Hangman original. And Shit’s on! That Deadeye in slo-mo made me concerned for Mox. What a glorious war! (I am so thankful for the) Clean solid finish. No need for anything but. It works to make me even more excited for the rubber match. Adam Cole comes out for yet another in AEW’s growing canon of naturally beautiful dramatic moments. I’m reminded momentarily of that great Punk promo after Moxley went to rehab. I will miss Cole’s excellent Frank TJ Mackey heel routine. Then JungleHook v BilLee totally hits the mark. I love a good build to a Suplex. Good clean fun. I very much like the work (I’ve seen) of Paul Walter Hauser. His performance in ‘I, Tonya’ is incredible. I liked the Eastwood movie too. On a Renee show archive I listened to today he spoke about wanting to make a 4 Horsemen movie. He suggested he would play Arn. I love the thought of this! I hope he gets to deliver something a little better than this promo on the Friday show. Then MJF goes all Don Rickles. Some pretty tasteless stuff that might not be the best represention for this company. Why on earth would they book a sequence where MJF tells Takeshita to get out of the ring and he does actually that? Weird blunder. I mostly did like Max's promo, and I entirely loved Danielson v Takeshita. Danielson falling and grabbing his chest after one of those brutal chops lent some worry for a moment. What a sell! The Brainbuster on the floor was unreal. I love the talk of Takeshita moving up the card shortly. He’s clearly a special talent. I wonder how Callis fits here? I love Don, and the idea, but is turning Konsuke heel the right move? I’ve never really cared for Juice Robinson. The whole Rock Hard bullshit is probably better not said on this TV. I am looking forward to seeing what Robinson can muster up against (arguably the best wrestler in the company) Darby. I liked the Women’s Tag, but it seemed like it could have used more of a definitive turn. I was hoping for the double turn like others were 'Mercedes Muh-nay'. I sense a great heel in both Saraya and Toni. I do potentially like what they’re doing with Shida here. A freshening up is well in order. (Hey Mansury) the Eddie Kingston Ortiz video seemed off, even out of sync. Some strange choices there. I'm not into the story here anymore than anything else House of Black does outside the ring. Regardless, looking forward to the tag bout. I hope we get a Black-Kingston singles bout. The JAS-Starks promo was pretty hit and miss. I love Menard and Parker. Tay too. Starks has always been a guy with great fire and flow to his talk, but too often the talking points are WEAK. His confidence is strong enough to carry him thru, but he needs to cut out the tone deaf bullshit. Also, the constant reasoning for everything being because he's ‘Absolute’. I trust he’ll bounce back. I like Ricky. Garcia was pretty fun here. Action Andretti did pretty well, but his act is going to get booed as this earlier era ‘white meat babyface’. LA was a good crowd, certainly better than average but not quite as hot as the hotter cities (I can’t name them all, but sat in with one of them). I dearly love Pac, Rey Fenix, Penta, Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson and Kenny Omega. And I very very much loved this match. It’s hard to believe they just pulled off 7 fucking matches at this level and this fresh! Unfuckingbelievable! AEdub just rolling along with spectacular weekly television.

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I watched the "promo" MJF did. It's 2023 and we got someone doing culturally insensitive jokes about Takeshita's use of English and about his last name. It would be like someone making jokes about MJF's Jewish heritage in a promo and the direction that could go in....he wouldn't like that either. But I guess he's at a point where he's grasping for anything for heel heat. None of that crap he did would have passed at WWE and would have gotten him a one-way trip to 205 Live or NXT Level Up or WWE Main Event and counting the number of lights in the rafters.

Bandido is next week so great, we'll probably see MJF making insensitive jokes about his heritage too. Hopefully someone at WBD will grab Tony Khan by the arm and tell him to get his champion to straighten out or they'll lose sponsors.

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Great show overall.  Crowd was hot and apparently they had strong last minute/day of sales (I hope it was due to buzz around the product and people weren't expecting Sasha).  Top 3 matches delivered.  The degree of difficulty on stuff in the main event was wild.  I think it was simultaneously the craziest and safest/best executed big ladder match, at least that I can recall.  I don't recall a lot of trios ladder matches in the states either.  I thought Lucha Bros needed the win more, but I'll wait to see the directions they go in with both teams.  Kenny as a single pretty much has to be a heatseeking missile for the world title so I get having the trios belts on them to keep him away from it.  That was the original plan back when Punk was going to be champ, to keep them apart for a while.  I need to watch all 3 matches again without commercials, I always like them better on second watch.

- Cole was a legit great surprise.  I kinda thought he was done, got a little choked up seeing him so emotional.  I didn't see his ROH babyface stuff.  That was a long time ago though, everything about him screams working from underneath babyface to me.  Also think he should be a tag or trios guy, if for nothing else maybe it keeps him healthier.  I dug him a lot in NXT until things got stale.  Thought his AEW run was underwhelming to put it nicely, but a lot of it was the booking.  Thinking back on it, he was a tag champ and a secondary champ in NXT before they put the top belt on him.  I think that's where Tony fucked up, pushing him to the moon rather than slow building him.  And personally I thought it was kind of a bad look for AEW.  It hurt Hangman too, having Cole as his first big challenger after the Danielson matches, but what's done is done.  Hanger has recovered IMO, hopefully Cole can stay healthy and get on a good run.

- I liked the story in Page/Mox, was fine with the finish.  On doing "head injury" angles when you have real concussion injuries going on I've got mixed feelings.  It goes back to the "Owen Voice" stuff.  Wrestling has been faking injuries forever.  You've got Bryan Danielson's take on this, who believes you should use everything in pro-wrestling.  Real life, real injuries, everything.  He wanted to do worked head injury stuff in WWE but they wouldn't let him.  In general I agree with Bryan, but honestly I think I side with WWE on that one.  It's kind of case by case.  I know everyone wants desperately to work the fans and it's really hard today, and there's lot's of blurred lines and grey area....but there's certain stuff I'd rather they not fuck around with too much when you see how devastating repeated concussions have been to people.  But like they say, it ain't ballet and a few eggs may get cracked

- I had zero clue who Hauser was, I thought he was from Yellowstone which shows you how current on pop culture I am.  I looked him up though and saw he got WWE references changed to AEW in a movie he was working on so he's cool with me!  Loved the cheesy Bobby Duvall shirt too

I'm sure there's more but most everything has been covered.  AEW starting in 20->21 has been really good at closing out the last couple months of the year strong and starting off the next one hot

Edited by ExcellenceofAirPollution
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Thought last night was one of the best episodes in a long time, maybe one of their best ever. But yeah the Jericho segment was not great and once again cut in to the main event event time, which continue to feel rushed with no breathing room outside of the bell to bell action. I actually really liked the sprint style of the match but for a 7 match series I think they should have treated it as a bigger deal with the entrances and post match celebration. At least there was no shoehorned angle, just a celebration culminating months in the making. This has always been one of Dynamite’s biggest issues for me. 

Hangman/Mox was fantastic, Jungle Hook match was perfect for what it was. When MJF came out and started doing his schtick I thought they were doing a perfect setup for Takeshita to completely lay him out but instead the dude just leaves the ring like a complete dork so MJF can speak, and basically needed Danielson to save him. I think when you’re doing more edgy, sorta racisty heel work there needs to be a more urgent comeuppance for the baby face, MJF running like a child wasn’t enough for me. I’m really far from the PC police but I find so much of the promo work in AEW to be based around calling someone a pussy, shoving something far up their ass, “Maxy-pad” (why is a super progressive guy like Bryan equating femininity with cowardice? Again I’m not the PC guy it just feels soooo off brand for him), or low hanging ableist/racist kinda stuff. I think there’s a time and place for heels to be cheap and then get the shit kicked out of them for it, but AEW seems unaware of how uninspired all their shit talking is and it feels like the baby faces never take the high road. None of the best promos in the company are based around that edgy stuff, they’re based around real life work/shooty bits like Adam Cole’s fantastic speech. If only I liked his in ring as much as his talking. Sammy and Jungle Boy are learning promos on the job and I can’t say I’m excited for their future promos when they all just boil down to “That’s why this Sunday I’m gonna make you my BITCH”.

Also what’s up with all the daddy names. MJF calling himself daddy. Daddy Ass. Daddy Magic. Stroke Daddy. It’s not funny or creative anymore. They need some kind of continuity director, like how the earlier episodes had biting in every match, where only a guy like Moxley should be biting so he can stand out as uniquely gritty.

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Gotta agree on the comments about the content of some AEW promos. Stuff like Action Andretti using a low blow from Tay as rationale for "Sammy can't control his woman". Fuck me! The only people who think women should be controlled are too busy tweeting at teenage climate activist and being arrested in Romania to be watching AEW. 

Maybe this has been noted before, but I can't take Juice Robinson seriously at all because I just see and hear Will Forte whenever he cuts a promo. 

Loved the in-ring this week, nice mix of styles and paces. It's the variety that I enjoy most in AEW.

I'm really looking forward to Rampage for KOTBT vs Eddie/Ortiz. Hoping for that swank God's Hate entrance song too 🤞

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Yeah, this was a spectacular episode! All matches delivered and even the segments that others have criticised, I have no problem with. For example, that's how his name looks like, in written form! Tough shit, if you don't like it.

Junglehook was great! Too bad there's no chance Booker T could team with Jungle Boy...well, probably better they won't, since there's no nifty tag team name available for that team!

Bryan getting Bandido next will be the best possible rehash of what Jericho just did, but if these are the kinds of guys he's going to face, please continue this all the way to Revolution!

There were plenty of returning Adams, I wonder who both guys go after, next?

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Meltzer:

The Elite vs. Death Triangle, *****.

Bryan Danielson vs. Konosuke Takeshita, ****1/2.

Adam Page vs. Jon Moxley, ****1/4.

I'd go:

The Elite vs. Death Triangle, ****.

Bryan Danielson vs. Konosuke Takeshita, ****3/4.

Adam Page vs. Jon Moxley, ****1/2.

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33 minutes ago, The Natural said:

Brutal bump.

 

I kept thinking about Vince tearing both quads just sliding into the ring, I thought for sure Nick's calves or hamstrings would be absolutely destroyed after this. The speed he landed at was ridiculous.

 

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Big Bill's facial expressions are so underrated. When he's cocky towering over Hook and after the suplex, both brilliant reactions. 

With Britt and Hayter seemingly turning face, wonder if there's room for a heel Thunder Rosa to make a comeback? Or even a heel Stat? Cargill could easily turn face too.

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On 1/11/2023 at 10:27 PM, punkenhead said:

I have to ask. Is someone backstage trying to sabotage Ricky Starks? "Make sure to make fun of a person's speech impediment" doesn't seem like very sage advice to give.

I love AEW, and I will always watch and root for them. Having said that, between the misogyny and ableism lately, you would think it was AEW courting the Saudis, not Vince. Do better AEW.

 

 

 

 

I think he's in his own head a little bit. That promo on MJF was so amazing that now it feels like he's trying to do the same thing every week. The last thing a guy like Starks needs to do is "try." He needs to relax and find his groove. His delivery is still top notch, and that's like 70% of the battle to me. If you sound like you don't mean what you say, it almost doesn't matter about content. That's why I find guys like Seth Rollins so insufferable. I don't believe what he says, and I don't believe he believes what he says. That might've changed in the last month or so, but for a long time he came off the wrong kind of disingenuous. 

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2 hours ago, Log said:

One thing really bugged me on this show: Adam Cole wearing a suede jacket with his wet hair touching it. I’m happy for him, but that’s just wrong. 

Needed more tassles.

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2 minutes ago, Zakk_Sabbath said:

Re: @The Natural 's pic of Kenny with the titles, how freakin' beautiful are those Trios belts? They remind me of the Ron Simmons/Vader WCW title from '92-'93 (which they kept making the toy of long into 2000 for some reason) in the best possible way.

 

 

Good shout that, @Zakk_Sabbath. Cheers.

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