5 Ups & 6 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Apr 7)

2. Demolition Darby

Darby Allin
AEW

The best match on the show was Darby Allin vs. JD Drake, which had just enough time to breathe but not enough to hit its ceiling.

Much of this was a fun styles clash. Drake his hard-hitting and heavy-handed, and battered the TNT Champion around with big strikes and bigger bombs throughout. Sting's arrival cleared Ryan Nemeth from ringside, minimising the shenanigans, and Allin fought back with quickness and evasiveness, as he always does when positioned opposite a larger man.

But JD is no lumbering stiff. The cliché Agile For A Big Man applies here as he pulled off a brutal Cannonball while Allin was stuck in a Tree of Woe, then a late match Moonsault. He was a fun dance partner before an avalanche Code Red and Coffin Drop finished him off.

This had the air of an old Cody defence, when Rhodes would put the TNT Title up against anyone and everyone. That theme continues when Allin faces Matt Hardy next week.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.