AEW Dynamite - Best and Worst - Sting and Darby Allin retaliate, squash match, major mistake with top feud
This week's AEW Dynamite continued its focus on adding hype to the ongoing feuds heading into the Full Gear pay-per-view next month. The entire episode was nothing short of action-packed, which helped engage the audience's interest until the end.
Tonight, fans also witnessed a few matches from round one of the TBS and world title eliminator tournaments. As always, a few booking decisions felt questionable, which we will be discussing as positives and negatives from the episode. Given this is the reviewer's perspective on this article, feel free to pen down your thoughts as well in the comments section.
#5 Best: Sting and Darby Allin gets revenge on The Pinnacle on AEW Dynamite
It's @Sting...and @DarbyAllin is BACK and wants @The_MJF at #AEWFullGear! Tune in Live Nationwide for #AEWDynamite on @tntdrama NOW https://t.co/ZF8r86ZuVT
Finally, after weeks of getting ambushed either backstage or in the ring, Sting and Darby Allin retaliated against The Pinnacle tonight. Earlier, MJF squashed Bryce Donovan before mocking fans in Boston in his typical style. The Salt of the Earth then escalated the segment by fooling everyone with Sting's entrance, which turned out to be Shawn Spears' brainchild.
However, the complexity of this angle changed once The Icon eventually appeared out of nowhere in the ring. He ambushed Spears and Wardlow with his baseball bat. As MJF ran out of the ring, Darby Allin showed up from the first-row arena, which prompted him to make another escape.
The segment ended with the former TNT Champion laying out a challenge to MJF for Full Gear. The entire clean house from the two-face painted stars worked pretty well, and it has added intensity to this feud. With the match between the two top pillars of the company almost set, fans will be intrigued to find out how their storyline will unfold in the weeks to come.
#4 Worst: The continuation of the saga between Cody Rhodes and Malakai Black
.@BASTARDPAC is out to even the odds - Tune in Live Nationwide for #AEWDynamite on @tntdrama NOW https://t.co/guX6sp8u7E
Last week, when Cody Rhodes defeated Malakai Black, it looked like their feud ended with a trilogy. However, the company seems to be looking to continue this rivalry, as shown on Dynamite tonight.
It just didn't feel right about Rhodes breaking his character to rationalize for not turning heel. Moreover, Andrade El Idolo's interruption and his poor mic skills didn't do well either. The aftermath saw Black showing up in the ring to launch an assault on Rhodes.
However, PAC came out to even the odds. But does Malakai Black really need to align himself with Andrade, who himself hasn't picked up steam since joining the promotion. Even though this feud is giving the spotlight to both PAC and Andrade, at the same time, extending the feud between Black and Rhodes doesn't seem to be a good decision, especially for the former.
Malakai Black has a special mystique to his character, which needs to be kept limited. But given his current booking, fans shouldn't be surprised if he ends up taking another loss next month.