5 Ups & 3 Downs From AEW Dynamite (May 15 - Results & Review)
The return of Darby Allin elevates the most promising Dynamite in weeks.
As mentioned previously, ever since Will Ospreay made his full-time AEW debut - just as Swerve Strickland made his ascent as the World champion-elect - a problem surfaced.
Ospreay is the consensus best wrestler in the world, and while tastes are fundamentally subjective, Swerve (through no real fault of his own) doesn't offer a contrast. The same people who despise Ospreay's work or style are not likely to be drawn to Swerve's. They are redolent of one another.
Who, truly, is the guy? Who is the Ace?
Well, rather unhelpfully, AEW have answered this question by positioning Swerve and Ospreay as upper midcard acts.
Swerve does not feel like the focal point of the company. The focal point is the latest war for AEW's soul; Swerve, who gets his ass kicked most weeks, is presented in a manner not too dissimilar to a babyface TNT champion. He often appears midway through the first hour in a slot that is hardly reserved for the supposed most important star in the company. Neither the booking nor the sequencing is doing him many favours. He was scheduled to wrestle Brian Cage last night. Isn't it strange that it didn't automatically feel like it had to be the main event?
Ospreay meanwhile is gunning for Roderick Strong's International title. It's below the wrestler and the character (had the rankings not disappeared as soon as they were reintroduced), and is only happening to lift his inevitable shadow from the main event scene. But then, the main event scene is hardly Swerve's house.
A lot of wrestlers feel like they're on the same level, and none of those wrestlers occupy the top.
Did Dynamite do anything to reverse this trend...?