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

4. Good Use Of Plotting

After speaking with Joe again backstage, MJF discovered a Masked Men mask outside of the Mogul Embassy's dressing room door - one presumably placed there by the actual Devil to implicate Swerve Strickland.

This led to a verbal exchange between MJF and Swerve which, while heavy on the exposition, was well-performed. The idea that Swerve's dual obsessions with Hangman Page and the AEW World title pin him as a potential suspect was really quite inspired, as was the first tease of what could and should be the World title match at Revolution. It's almost irritating, this deft use of plotting. Swerve has emerged from out of nowhere as a credible red herring, after the use of Hangman Page in that role last week, and for what? A sub-2019 Dark Order presentation that undermines all of it?

If you can look past the hokey presentation - and you can't - AEW is actually telling an intricate, unpredictable story with some degree of narrative sophistication.

They're just getting in their own way.

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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!