How AEW Did The Impossible
It is impossible to take one's eyes off Brodie Lee. Even before he obliterated Cody in a phenomenal and ballsy squash, a grinning subversion of December 18, he was superb in six and eight-man tags. Exercising his immense power with sumptuous in-ring character work, he reordered the matches to his liking, allowing Cabana to take pins and summoning Hangman Page into his maw. His monster is as cerebral as it is brutal.
In a masterstroke of the sort WWE never really committed to with Bray Wyatt, Mr. Brodie Lee now wields tangible and credible power in the form of the prestigious TNT Championship.
There is enormous - boundless - narrative potential within this impossible success that is the new Dark Order. Lee is the autocrat monster, his minions hilarious, feckless geeks made sympathetic by his awfulness. Evil Uno and Grayson were always miscast. Uno is a delight of a person - his naivety on BTE is so great - and Grayson is an explosion of an athlete. One day, this dynamic will lead to the face turn that will reveal the real brilliance of their team. The inevitable Colt Cabana Vs. Mr. Brodie Lee match feels big and earned, by the standards of the midcard. But Mr. Brodie Lee Vs. John Silver is the one. A running gag on Being The Elite, Silver's irrepressible and massively endearing enthusiasm is the source of much fury to Brodie. It's a winning dynamic - how a "Shut the f*ck up, Silver" design isn't on ProWrestlingTees is a mystery - and it was adapted, tantalisingly, during the Dark Order's victory celebration on August 27. This is without considering the Cody rematch, nor the TNT Title defences to come.
On Saturday Night Dynamite, Mr. Brodie Lee didn't tell anybody that they'd never doubt the Dark Oder again.
This time, he didn't have to.