7 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (23 Feb)

1. Cringe (In The House Of Black)

Penta Oscuro
AEW

Penta El Zero Miedo's rebirth as Penta Oscuro felt under-serviced and under-cooked last night.

This wasn't helped by Alex Abrahantes, whose decision to dress up as a vampire at a school disco was so goofy that it undermined whatever fear factor Penta was trying to generate (if the wacky tombstone prop hadn't already). Nonetheless, Penta didn't feel substantially different here. He had a new entrance and darker look, harking back to his Lucha Underground run, but was otherwise the same as he always is and won via roll-up, having neutralised Malakai Black by making him swallow his own poison mist.

The crowd was down, too. Perhaps they were on a comedown from the gripping MJF/CM Punk segment preceding it, but there were moments of near-silence here. This shouldn't be the case for two tag teams whose offense is as dazzling as the Kings of the Black Throne and PAC/Penta.

An unsubstantial match for a feud and character change that felt like it should have been given a bigger spotlight. And if Dynamite was simply too busy to give it more time, perhaps it should have been rescheduled. This wasn't quite enough.

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. 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.