AEW Dynamite 2/15/2023
An all too prophetic symbol of this show (Credit-AEW)
Here’s how we rated this week’s Dynamite from Laredo, TX. Curious how we rank matches? We’ve got a rubric for that.
AEW Dynamite - 2/15/2023
The Acclaimed, Billy Gunn, and Orange Cassidy def. Jay Lethal, Jeff Jarrett, Satnam Singh, and Sonjay Dutt: ★★
Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli def. Rush and Preston Vance: ★★★
Mark Briscoe def. Josh Woods: ★★
“Jungle Boy” Jack Perry def. Brian Cage: ★★
“Hangman” Adam Page def. Kip Sabian: ★★
Ruby Soho def. Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. and Toni Storm: ★★
MJF (Credit-AEW)
Show Highlight—
Wardlow sitting down with JR. They’re screwing up Wardlow! was something fretted about by the fanbase, and while his initial run with the TNT belt wasn’t the anointment to Next Top Guy as expected, this side of Wardlow was captivating to hear. I, as I’m assuming, most of the audience, had no clue about the relationship he had with his father. When we went to Beach Break 2022 in Cleveland, off-camera, Wardlow talked to the crowd and you got the sense that he was a humble, family-centric dude. The significance of getting his haircut made sense and brought added drama to the match with Samoa Joe. This version of Wardlow is interesting. And this was also a great way to use JR on camera on Dynamite to give the sit down interviews extra gravitas, while at the same time not putting JR in a position to embarrass himself on a live microphone.
What Worked—
Mark Brisoce is All Elite. Nice to see! Sure, he’s signed to ROH already but making it clear that he’ll be on Warner Bros. Discovery television is a goodwill gesture by Tony Khan.
Texas Tornado Tag Match. Took a minute to heat up but it was the clear match of the night. It would’ve been hilarious if when the show returned from break, during the highlights-during-the-commercial-montage, they showed Moxley intentionally blading on TV just to rub it in the face of the fanbase even more.
Christian returned. I’ve written this about Christian continuously, but he does the simple stuff that’s been done a million times so well that it feels nothing like a rehash when he’s doing it. I loved the casual evil of allowing Jungle Boy to get that close to him before he maced him. I could have used a showier, smarmier reveal that his elbow was fine, but a fine surprise nevertheless.
What Didn’t Work—
MJF promo. Being a genius is a burden. When the expectation of you as a performer is to create something transcendent every single week, the audience is trained that you can’t have an off-week, especially when, in-character, you’ve called your shot and said so as much. This was a by-the-numbers-pro-wrestling-promo-duel that felt as inspired as if it were for the European Title. This was uncharacteristically off all over the place: Daniels recycling the “dick in the dirt” line from Hangman; how long Daniels talked before MJF deemed it the perfect time to kick him in the pills; why Danielson didn’t just run out and kick MJFs ass right from the start (maybe his dressing room was blocked, who knows); and not to mention the most senseless, TNA-ish sin where Daniels is blocking for the camera and not for the live audience, continuously facing the over-the-shoulder camera and revealing his body open to attack from MJF, the guy he doesn’t respect because he kicks people in the balls…who kicked you in the balls…I don’t fucking get it.
Show Cringe—
…but why? Not every episode of Dynamite can hit the highs the show is capable of hitting, nor is every week legally required to produce at least two, four star matches, but if you’re going with a storyline heavy show, make the logic make some goddamn sense. The motivations behind shit this week seemed puzzling, and if not that, there were either oversights or outright odd directions to get from point a to point b. I might be forgetting something, but let’s ask why…
Why is Max Caster, the babyface, referencing Jeff Jarrett’s just recently deceased father?
Why is MJF not pissed at any of the heels he paid in advance for not getting the job done against Danielson?
Why is there an, “invoking of a rematch clause,”—the most WWE-ish Vincespeak—a thing now in AEW?
Why is Billy Gunn welcomed back to The Acclaimed fold? He encouraged a title match in the first place and was inactive when Max and Bowens needed him the most.
Why does AEW love to have three way or four way tag title matches on PPVs? If the focus needs to be on The Acclaimed and that’s the act the audience needs to be behind, why are we throwing two bonus tag teams into the match, especially two tag teams that are going to qualify in two different matches; couldn’t they just have one match to decide who qualifies? If you’re one of the boys, are you happy with your spot on the card if this is how you get on the show? Wouldn’t it just land as an empty gesture where you almost don’t want to be on Revolution then?
Why are Brandon and Nakazawa still part of the Elite package? Speaking of which, are they heels or faces? Why is Don Callis with them if they are babyfaces? And why is Don Callis dressing like Buff Bagwell during his ill-advised run on Gigolos?
Why did Mox initially tell Hangman their feud was over? As if the guy bleeding every week can hide that he doesn’t want a death match. I get that they course-corrected it within the promo, but why do that swerve in the first place? Why does Hangman care that the Dark Order was trying to back him up? Why can’t Evil Uno dress like that every week?!
Why is Ruby Soho the wrestler hand-picked to be between Team Britt and team Saraya? Given her stock value since a month or so after All Out 2021, why does either side care in 2023? Why isn’t Jade in this spot?
Whose Rose will Ruby accept? (Credit-AEW)
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