-Well, I didn’t mind the opening segment with Master P and The Opps like I thought I would. Master P seemed into his role and the audience responded to him positively. Plus, Joe really laid in hard to the musician and New Orleans, which made Joe come across well.
Moxley gives Joe a lot
-As for the angle? Thumbs up. Look, they are giving Joe a lot in the build up to the world title match with Moxley, which we now know will take place at Beach Break on May 14. Not many guys get to choke out Moxley two weeks in a row, but Joe did. Now, I don’t think they are angling toward Joe winning the championship, obviously, but it presents him as a credible challenger.
-The Young Bucks once again getting involved in Death Rider business further screams that a big team vs. team match is getting lined up for Double or Nothing on PPV. Anarchy in the Arena is a staple match for that show and these angles continue to foreshadow what we might be getting in that stipulation match this year.
-Yeah, I wouldn’t be jobbing Ricochet out to Mark Briscoe. Why? Briscoe is the ultimate mid-card guy and Ricochet is someone with upside that is connecting with the audience. They are building to Ricochet vs. Kevin Knight, but this was a strange chapter in that story.
Finally …
-Stokely Hathaway as the new manager/agent for FTR is great move. Hathaway hasn’t been used well at all since joining AEW and this is a chance for him to shine with a suitable team to work with. FTR got heat for beating up Rock and Roll Express and that’s fine. Feuding with The Paragon is also fine, but FTR needs to win that feud. The Paragon could use a W too, but there is just way more upside for FTR than Adam Cole and Co. right now.
-The Young Bucks wrestled a Young Bucks match against Kevin Knight and Mike Bailey. High pace, loads of action, and very creative. Lacked logic all the way through. A good match as always, but to what end?
Close to silly
-I’ve been pretty high and complimentary about The Hurt Syndicate storyline with MJF, but this week was a setback on that positivity. Much of the courting segment felt like it did last week. More importantly than that, it inched closer to being downright silly. Plus, how is the audience supposed to be reacting to MJF? Should they be seeing and reacting to his self-serving attempt to join the group? They aren’t. If they are supposed to be reacting that way and seeing his selfish ways, why isn’t The Hurt Syndicate seeing that as well? In reality, the crowd wants MJF to get the three thumbs up at this point based on how they reacted. So, is Lashley the heel then? It’s messy and muddy.
-It’s smart to give Konosuke Takeshita and Josh Alexander the win over Will Ospreay and Brody King this week. Alexander just joined AEW, so establishing him as a winner after losing last week to Adam Page was a priority. It also shows that aligning with The Don Callis Family is a frugal endeavor. Lastly, the win opened the door to heat on Kyle Fletcher ahead of his Owen Hart Cup Tournament semifinal match against Page next week.
Finals set
-Kris Statlander vs. Jaime Hayter held down the fort nicely in the main event. Hayter getting the win and advancing to the finals of the women’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament against Mercedes Mone was the right way to book the final. It’s a big time match and a fresh match for Double or Nothing.
What did you think of this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite? Let us know in the comments!
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