8 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite: Fyter Fest Night 2 (Jul 8)

2. An Intriguing Midcard Storyline Advances Neatly

Dark Order Colt Cabana
AEW

This was a nice bit of business, perhaps dulled slightly by the fact that it aimed to do that which the unreal eight-man tag had just blown away: advance a storyline via a kinetic multi-man tag team match.

It was still very good and very savvy in its escalation of the story beats. The Dark Order are attempting to recruit Colt Cabana into their organisation. First, they preyed on his vulnerability. Now, with his head turned, they have tested his loyalty: it was SCU that Cabana aligned with when he debuted with AEW, bringing his arc full circle in a deft booking touch.

Mr. Brodie Lee was quietly brilliant here, showing why the likes of Arn Anderson rave about his ring IQ; he arranged the match to both favour and test Cabana, manipulating him all the way, stepping in only to demonstrate the power he wields with a disgusting/beautiful German suplex. It was a treat to see the explosive Grayson back in action - he is incredible - and the old pros of SCU have an uncanny knack of losing but never resonating as losers.

Cabana won - the Dark Order made it so - but the question now, and it's an interesting one, is no longer if he gets in, but how he gets out.

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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!