9 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (June 15)

7. General Lack Of Backstage Bullsh*t

Toni Storm
AEW

There was too much in the way of convoluted AEW stuff across the various post-match scenes.

These signature, mandatory angles ranged from excellent to overstuffed, as detailed elsewhere in the article, but happily, the other bad trope AEW indulges itself with was abandoned for the night outside of Willow conveniently locating Stokely Hathaway to interrupt his promo. And, because Hathaway is such an entertainment machine, it's a joy to watch him in any context. This might seem like a very minor thing to praise, but the lack of contrivance enhanced the overall feel and presentation of the show.

One backstage segment in particular nailed what this device is meant to achieve...

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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!