9 Ups & 1 Down From AEW Dynamite: Holiday Bash

All Elite Wrestling delivers tidings of comfort and joy at Holiday Bash.

by Michael Sidgwick
Sting CM Punk
AEW

Winter Is Coming was an awesome show, but the ratings didn't reflect it.

Is this recent, troubling development a byproduct of the time zone shift, or is it indicative of a wider issue?

December is never a good month for pro wrestling. Interest always wanes, but this isn't necessarily a December problem. At its very best, Dynamite remains an incredible broadcast. The CM Punk Vs. MJF programme is red-hot, ablaze with the expected fire, and has overlapped nicely with several compelling developments: the Team Taz contract f*ckery, Dante Martin's continued ascent, the slow-burn MJF Vs. Wardlow build. It's all very elegant and propulsive. Last week, AEW delivered a ***** World Title match, leaving scope for a sequel, in which Hangman Page emerged as a true World Champion. Elsewhere, something feels like it's missing.

Too many star versus obvious loser matches.

Constant, contrived interruptions.

A sort of gloopy 50/50 midcard where you can no longer tell who truly benefitted from various programmes. Malakai Black? Andrade? PAC? Did...did Cody just win the whole deal there?

It's not near-perfect, which the All Out buzz suggested it might well be by this time of the year. Has Rampage diluted that aching wait between Wednesdays? Have we simply been spoiled by overwhelming star power and a standard of excellence? Is greatness somehow becoming mundane? Is AEW tiki-taka wrestling?

And did this amorphous problem affect Holiday Bash?

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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!