7 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (December 20 - Results & Review)

Ups...

7. Credit Where It's Rarely Given

Riho Vs. Saraya was surprisingly fine, but perhaps that shouldn't be a surprise.

Saraya hasn't exactly repaid the investment in both salary and more importantly time, since her failure to get over was rewarded by her becoming the fulcrum of the entire division, but she has entered a handful of serviceable to outright good performances since All In: London.

This was closer to the former, in truth, though Saraya does a good, low-key "Karen". It's really quite infuriating listening to her scream for no reason at the top of her lungs, and her grasp of the facial expression never gets the credit it should. Action-wise, this was only fair, but Saraya bumped with zero ego and did a job that left no ambiguity whatsoever over who the better wrestler was on the night. Riho's finishing flurry looked very good at least, the top-rope foot stomp in particular.

It's weirdly fashionable to bury Saraya, but she is almost antithetical to the entitled self-anointed saviour figure who first walked into the promotion. She does jobs the right way. Perhaps some of her ex-WWE contemporaries can learn a thing or two from her.

Toni Storm provided commentary, to uneven effect - though her resigned "And speaking of t*ts, Saraya looks like she's about to win" line was excellent.

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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!