5 Ups & 5 Downs From AEW Dynamite (30 August - Review)

2. Big Match, Dire Build

Konosuke Takeshita Don Callis
AEW

While the All Out build was pelted with a Down, the go-home angle for Kenny Omega Vs. Konosuke Takeshita deserves one of its own.

Already put on the backburner through Chris Jericho's misadventures with Don Callis, this go-home promo needed so much more. In a run-of-the-mill backstage promo, Callis publicly revealed his strategy for Takeshita - which Omega should now know how to defend, which is hardly the work of a manipulative heel mastermind - by showing Take X-rays of Omega's broken down body.

Ordinarily, Omega does a bang-up job of being banged-up, but the use of props here rendered it cartoonish. The stakes are so low for a story that is essentially premised on a huge familial betrayal and the potential downfall of a top star and all-time great. You're meant to feel like your hero is nearing the end, and that a despicable killer is lurking and ready to take him out for good. The match will be incredible, but why does it feel so inessential?

This warranted a long, live heated in-ring promo at a minimum.

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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!