7 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (June 8)

By Michael Hamflett / June 23, 2022

4. United Empire Make A Statement

A passive Up for this, if only because AEW at very least delivered a major NJPW name with just three weeks to go before the Forbidden Door pay-per-view.

Truthfully, Will Ospreay's arrival should have been greeted with headline news acclaim, but a combination of Tony Khan's over-reliance on surprise appearances of late and Ospreay's knack for alienating folk over the years diluted the shock and awe.

It was otherwise a serviceable and functional piece of television. A beatdown including Aussie Open and Aaron Henare on Trent Baretta and FTR set up a six-man tag for Rampage and potentially another multi-man at the pay-per-view. It's midcard stuff, but divisive d*ckhead Ospreay will likely elevate it with his presence alone just as he did here.