6 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (14 Sept)

3. The Firm Assembles

As far as course corrections go, this was stellar.

The Firm's grand unveiling was preceded by MJF, who introduced Stokely Hathaway as his best friend in wrestling after covering how W. Morrissey, Lee Moriarty, Colten and Austin Gunn, and Ethan Page helped him secure the Casino Ladder Match at All Out. What followed was a spot-on explanation of why this group exists and what its purpose will be going forward.

Hathaway gave his group identity and purpose, here. They are on a retainer, meaning their services can be called upon as and when required, though they won't be on television together all the time. This isn't supposed to be an all-conquering heel stable but the product of Stokely making good connections and using them to his advantage. The Firm is situational. When MJF doesn't need them, they'll be doing their own thing.

Stokely shined in his biggest promo spotlight yet, revealing how everything he'd done since Double Or Nothing had been a hustle to get his foot in the door, which explains the end of his Jade Cargill affiliation. Later, he went down the line, putting each Firm member over and setting out their goals.

An extremely impressive bit of business, given the lukewarm reaction to this group's assembly.