7 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (June 8)
Downs...
4. Forbidden Bore
There was worthy work to be enjoyed between Hangman Page and David Finlay, but in yet another somewhat damning indictment of the Forbidden Door concept being made real, a theoretically enormous AEW x NJPW interaction being used to further other things (see also: Adam Cole Vs Tomohiro Ishii and Minoru Suzuki Vs Samoa Joe) implied that there's still too much going on for anything to register fully.
Hangman Page's post-victory promo was more intriguing than great. His understated burial of the Battle Royal and his apparent exclusion from it spoke more to MJF's similar internal complaints last week than anything else, but an interruption from Adam Cole to ensure yet another battle between the former rivals felt like over-egging a pudding that has already been baked.
It's logical enough that Cole would want Jay White to beat Kazuchika Okada, and be angry enough at Page for suggesting this wouldn't occur. But the match feels like a condescending delay - Page/Okada should be and presumably is the direction; was a foregone conclusion TV squabble between Page and Cole really necessary to build for the way there?