10 Ups & 7 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Dec 11)

2. The Valiant QT Marshall

QT Marshall made all the sense in the world as Cody's tag partner. 'The American Nightmare' told The Butcher and The Blade that they could name his teammate, leading to their benefactor, MJF, stepping in to pick someone he perceived as weak and overmatched. It's a shame this went down on YouTube and not Dynamite, but it was a neat touch nonetheless.

The Butcher, The Blade, The Bunny, and MJF almost got more than they bargained for from the valiant Marshall, who fought well above himself in an adrenaline-pumping performance. He was a fantastic underdog, here. Full of fire and determination but not necessarily confidence, he coursed on momentum throughout and starred in a great, great final stand that saw him put up one hell of a fight, only to fall to The Butcher and The Blade's two-on-one assault. The producer even hit a Crossrhodes! It was class, but his defeat was ultimately the right one.

This bout over-delivered to an extreme degree. It was over as hell, with Cody getting a huge entrance pop and his hot tag phenomenal, with the heels sharing that shine. Their debut was cold, but the crowd were into them as villains here. This suggests that the won't become another Dark Order going forward and it was great to see the black-clad duo effectively score a win over one of AEW's biggest stars in their debut.