7 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Dec 7 - Review)

2. The Feeling Continues To Flood Back

Shawn Dean
AEW

Austin, Texas was hot as hell for most of the night. There is nothing like a passionate, interactive wrestling crowd, and Tony Khan and the roster deserve credit for cultivating the atmosphere and bringing back the inimitable AEW "feeling".

The company is unparalleled when operating at or near its peak, and the booking of the show overall serviced the audience.

AEW trusted the fans to remember that Shawn Dean, inexplicably, has MJF's number. Ricky Starks' Lights Out match win and Eliminator tournament triumph deftly led him to his home away from home ahead of the biggest match of his life. FTR Vs. The Acclaimed, more on which follows imminently, worked so well because it felt surreal that it was even happening.

The inspired tweak on a bogey team; a string of hard-fought wins mattering as a super-over babyface rises to his hardest challenge; a super-competitive main event with no hokey conflict and no bullsh*t finish with zero weight to it: this was AEW adhering to its original all-or-nothing sports-oriented vision, and the fans, clearly into this ideal of an alternative, went banana for most of the show.

The rating might disprove this take, but tonight was another tentative step towards AEW recovering its old soul.

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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!