7 Ups & 3 Downs From AEW Dynamite: Anniversary Edition (Oct 14)

AEW celebrates one year of Dynamite with four title fights - and more.

Eddie Kingston Jon Moxley
AEW

All Elite Wrestling celebrated one year of Dynamite on TNT last night, loading the card with a trio of big title matches and turning up the pre-show media drive in hope of attracting increased attention and popping a big number. With the NBA over and no election-related competition to worry about, perhaps they'll do that, though they still faced competition from the Buffalo Bills and Tenessee Titans in the NFL.

Jon Moxley put his AEW World Championship on the line against Lance Archer in the main event, with 'The Murderhawk Monster' returning for the first time since a brush with COVID-19. Elsewhere, Orange Cassidy challenged for Cody's TNT Title a few short weeks after a failed attempt at dethroning Mr. Brodie Lee, Hikaru Shida defended the Women's Championship against Big Swole, and Best Friends fought Tag Team Champions FTR in the opener.

These special episodes of Dynamite usually sit amongst the finest shows the promotion has ever produced. Last night wasn't quite on that level, though it was a decent representation of the brand as a whole, whether good or bad. With its developments, the road to Full Gear looks a lot clearer as well.

Let's light the fuse...

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. 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.