9 Ups & 1 Down From AEW Dynamite (31 Aug)

2. The Elite Advance In Trios Tournament

Chances are strong that unless you wanted a match completely at odds with its participants' ongoing storylines and who they are as performers, you got everything you expected from The Elite vs. United Empire.

This was a fabulous main event to close a very good go-home show and advance the Trios World Championship Tournament. Aesthetically, it was an all-out crowd popper rife with great exchanges between some of the best wrestlers in the world. The two sides' interplay was fantastic. These guys wrestled like they've been facing each other all their lives, crafting something marvellous from their instant chemistry, with well-timed cut-offs, counters and transitions creating great drama at all the right moments.

Going deeper than that, the ongoing tensions between Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega were paid off without giving too much away. The duo started in the ring together and provided some of the most thrilling sequences. Will somehow landing on his feet from an attempt Snapdragon was the most gasp-worthy of these, but their work together did much to whet the appetite for a future singles bout.

Omega's recovering body remains a key story, too. His torso was finally exposed as United Empire tore his rashguard away and inflicted brutal punishment upon his taped shoulder and wrapped torso. The bot was lower on deliberate flubs, as it should have been, because Kenny is getting stronger as he shakes the rust away. Nonetheless, his physical state gives his opponents several massive targets, which will be interesting when he inevitably faces off with the moralistic Adam Page at All Out.