4 Ups & 7 Downs From AEW Dynamite: Fight For The Fallen (August 17 - Review)

6. Stadium Stampede?

Eddie Kingston Orange Cassidy
AEW

Eddie Kingston making his return to All Elite Wrestling after a week off let alone a month or two is the sort of thing that would typically be an instant up, but as he arrived to...further stack the number in favour of the babyfaces in the post-match melee, two clear sides took shape for a multi-man showdown at All In.

Another multi-man showdown at All In. Another multi-man showdown at All In featuring a minimum of three wrestlers (Jon Moxley, Orange Cassidy and Kingston himself) that could and should have been involved in something more significant rather than engaging in this bloated knockabout to delay the Moxley Vs Cassidy and Moxley Vs Kingston singles matches for another day.

Stadium Stampede conjures thoughts of Hangman Page and Kenny Omega sharing a quiet moment in an empty bar, The Young Bucks running spots down the length of a football field and Chris Jericho smashing the head off a giant mascot, but All In's isn't that. Stadium Stampede 2 was a stretch too far for the gimmick, and Wembley won't be an empty TIAA Bank Field with all that place to play. Like much of the card, it's probably too stacked with talent to fail, but then an Orange Cassidy International Championship match fell short literally seconds before the announcement, so.

Too critical of something that's just a bit of fun? Maybe that would have been a suitable subtitle for the entire episode.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett