10 MORE Storylines AEW Dropped Cold

6. Lance Archer And PAC Circle One Another

Matt Hardy
AEW

When PAC returned from his pandemic-enforced hiatus in late 2020, he went after Eddie Kingston and his "family" in a signature AEW storyline.

Before getting his hands on Eddie, in retaliation for him stealing the Lucha Bros. from him, he defeated the Blade (November 18) and then the Butcher (December 17) before succeeding in his mission at New Year's Smash. This was neat, tidy and logical enough, without being tremendously exciting in truth, but it doesn't qualify for this list. It was a boilerplate AEW narrative, but it concluded in a coherent and decisive way. What does warrant inclusion here is the subtle tease of a PAC Vs. Lance Archer programme.

On the December 16 Dynamite - preceded by what may be the greatest graphic drop in AEW history, and think of the ground that covers - Eddie Kingston Addressed His Enemies, plural. One was PAC, obviously; the other was Lance Archer, dating back to the events of the All Out 2020 Casino Battle Royale.

This drew out Archer, whose attack on Eddie drew out the warring members of the now-estranged stable. PAC also made his presence felt, but Archer was upset. Kingston was his. This led to a tense confrontation which, you guessed it, didn't materialise in a match of any kind.

And while it's true that Khan frequently dovetails his storylines in such a way, that tease was too thrilling not to deliver on.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!