7 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Dec 18)

by Michael Sidgwick

1. A Scintillating Sprint

SCU Young Bucks
FITE TV

Genuinely, the closing segment wasn't at all helped by how incredibly pulsating that main event was.

The exhilarating pace SCU and the Bucks set from the jump, with one eye cast towards the clock, created an expectation of something greater than even an electric and beautifully worked tag team banger. Here's a statistic: until last night's opener, not one Dynamite match has exceeded 16 minutes in length. Most settle around the 10-12 minute range. The formula, and TV time remaining, conditioned the crowd, or me at least, to anticipate a genuine epic - something the World Championship stakes only intensified - and the sudden nature of the finish edged the crowd somewhat, who revolted at the angle in partial protest.

That is subjective, and probably too kind, but what a banger this was for 10 blood-pumping minutes. Worked within that quintessentially wonderful, creative breakneck Bucks norm, it was a better in-house Bucks match than most because the dynamic unearthed their bratty demeanour - they had to be the d*ckheads of old to channel the old, Championship-level best - and the struggle to perform several spots really put this over as a hard-fought title match.

The ingenuity and control required of Matt Jackson to set up a Tombstone from nowhere was just unreal, next-level pro wrestling - wrestling so good that they should be the focal point of the division, and not an act that isn't even over.

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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 surefire Undisputed WWE Universal 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!