5 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (20 April)
CM Punk edges closer to Hangman Page, AEW & NJPW open the Forbidden Door, Jay White appears...
Another loaded AEW Dynamite card played out on TBS last night, with America's second-biggest promotion stuffing its two hours of allotted airtime with seven matches - and more.
The recent trend continues. At the moment, AEW seems focused on filling its flagship show with as much content and as many key players as possible, moving through things at a breakneck pace. Sometimes, this causes problems as moments that could have benefitted from having longer to settle are cut away abruptly. On other occasions, it makes Dynamite an exciting, beat-a-minute show, the like of which doesn't exist elsewhere in episodic American wrestling.
Last night's episode landed somewhere in the middle.
Tony Khan had another of his "huge announcements" on deck, which once again popped his show's core audience huge, particularly the hardcores. Elsewhere, CM Punk wrestled Dustin Rhodes in a classically-styled bout, edging closer to World Championship contention. Two Owen Hart Foundation Tournament qualifiers played out in Kyle O'Reilly. vs. Jungle Boy and Danielle Kamela vs. hometown heroine Britt Baker, wrestling here for the first time since her Revolution 2022 defeat, and more.
Let's light the fuse...