Excalibur saying this Women's Championship match was a "fitting" ending to the 200th edition of Dynamite was more than a little sly, but the match and result itself paid the line off all the same and disguised a weak build with an incredible bit of business.
The best ever AEW Women's Champion defended against the most under-appreciated one, and in a genuinely wonderful and cathartic twist, the latter is about to get the biggest bouquet of flowers ever. A fabulous brawl in a prestige spot will ensure the match and women involved are remembered for their important contributions too.
Two incredible false finishes appeared to put a Storm retention beyond doubt, but in handling The Outcasts herself and not being dumb enough to fall to their back-up plan, Shida's credibility remained in tact as she returned to the AEW summit. Dynamite 200 was so rarely the best exhibition of what AEW was and can be again, but this was what people talk about when they reference the peak.
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
