Episode 28 of AEW Dynamite joined us just as the last several have…in a mostly empty arena in an undisclosed location. This show was centered around Jon Moxley vs Jake Hager, and rightfully so. Tony Schiavone and Chris Jericho handled the commentary and several of the undercard/AEW Dark talent were out at ringside to cheer on the competitors.
The show opened with another Jake Roberts promo as he hyped up Lance Archer. Jake talked about how Archer had to leave the states to go east and make a name for himself in Japan, as we see footage of Lance destroying people. Jake says AEW would love a guy like Archer on top with the TNT Title. His low tones and psychology-ridden promos are truly some of the best in the business in 2020.
Next up we get a Colt Cabana promo, talking about how he’s underestimated in AEW and he’s flown under the radar. AEW is padding time with a lot of solo vignettes, but using them as packages to hype up their matches is very smart.
Colt Cabana vs. Lance Archer
This is a first round match in the TNT Title Tournament. Archer wrestles a very physical and deliberate style. He makes every blow count and uses his size for intimidation. He’s extremely athletic as well (as evidenced by his corner reverse splash here) but he has an old school feel since arriving in NJPW and AEW. Cabana doesn’t get a ton of offense here, but he takes a lot of punishment. He trades Archer in brawling a few times and (rightfully) comes up short. Archer wins with the Blackout. This match was decent, but nothing special. I can’t see this tournament ending in any other way but Archer holding up the title.
We get one of the main highlights of the show next, as Britt Baker teaches wrestling rules from a dentist’s office. This is part Dean Douglas and part Issac Yankem, and I mean that with the most reverence possible. Britt has a board and talks about how some competitors (Hikaru Shida) use evil tactics and don’t fight with honor. This heel turn has saved Britt’s career, and she has become one of the greatest attributes to the weekly Dynamite show. Great stuff here.
Throughout the night, we had various wrestlers and celebrities weighing in on their predictions for the Moxley/Hager fight. This was a nice way to pad time and make the main event feel important. People like “Big” John McCarthy and Mike Goldberg from Bellator giving their feedback was a nice touch.
Cassandra Golden vs. Britt Baker
This was the first of three squash matches on this show. Golden wrestled in a losing effort on Dark a few weeks back against Shida. This was a very quick squash, as Golden got in zero offense. Baker wins after good character work with the curb stomp on the ropes. I like that she has multiple ways to finish opponents.
Next up, we got a “Bubbly Bunch” segment, where each of the Inner Circle talked to each other on their phones. Each member found ways to chastise The Elite to continue their feud. This segment fell kind of flat for me, as it wasn’t as entertaining as the premise entailed. But I applaud it for being different and attempting to get characters over while keeping social distancing protocol.
Sammy Guevara vs. Suge D
This was another squash match, it just lasted far longer than the previous one. They gave Suge D a lot of time and counter strikes, but not a lot of offense. Suge D is the former Sugar Dunkerton from Chikara. The most entertaining part of this was hearing Jericho shill for Guevara, and having the commentators try to pronounce Suge’s name. Guevara wins with the Feast Your Eyes (ala Dominik Dijakovic). Props again for giving Guevara a second finishing maneuver. After the match, Guevara gets the mic and says that he’ll destroy Darby Allin next week in the TNT Title Tournament. Allin runs out, and Guevara powders off.
Kip Sabian vs. Chuck Taylor
They gave this match a lot of time, but it felt rather uneventful. Both used a decent amount of offense, but in reality, this was built around the seconds. The two traded moves until Penelope jumped up on the ring apron and took her jacket off to distract Taylor. Then Orange Cassidy did the same to Kip Sabian. Sabian gets the roll-up win after Ford hits Taylor with a hurricanrana. But before this was over, Jimmy Havok inexplicably laid Cassidy out with a DDT, and celebrated with Sabian. Jericho tried to explain that they were roommates, but this is extremely lazy booking. Sabian and Havok don’t fit together in a character sense, and they didn’t have these two set this up anytime before. A simple backstage conversation would’ve made sense of this. Havok faces Cassidy next week.
Sean Spears vs. Justin Law
Sean Spears is finally starting to get the recognition he deserves. He’s won three of his last four matches, and is coming off of his second AEW main event last week. He gets the squash treatment here, as he beats Justin Law in short order with the C4. Rumors have been swirling that he may be linked to a new horsemen type of group with the former Revival, so we’ll see.
Jon Moxley vs. Jake Hager- AEW World Championship
This is an empty arena No DQ match with Jim Ross going solo on commentary. The empty arena format doesn’t really work, but at least in an intense fight setting, it feels slightly more natural. These two went 35 minutes, but I don’t mind the padding as much here, as they did a nice job surrounding the fight with build. I found Ross to be better here than he has been on 90% of AEW broadcasts. He seemed energetic and on his game. The two fighters started out with a measured match, grappling and going hold-for-counter-hold. Then the next phase spilled outside into the seats, as the two brawled all around the stands. They did a nice job of keeping the fight intense, and mixing submission wrestling in with the brawling. In the end, Moxley wins with a Paradigm Shift on a chair to pin the undefeated Bellator fighter. This was long, but very solid overall. This was the right choice for a TV main event.
Overall, I have to say that it was one of the weaker shows in AEW Dynamite history. We’re far into the taped schedule with small (wrestler) crowds and a very limited roster. This was a one match show, plain and simple. That one match did tell a great story, but three squashes and over-reliance on packages hurt this one. They’re trying, and I give them credit under the circumstances. But coming off of a loss to NXT last week and one of their lowest rated shows ever (0.6), this show may wind up even lower. Stay safe everyone, as the tiredness and constrictions of this virus set in, we must remain strong and hopeful!
