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AEW's original aim was to disrupt the wrestling industry. They've done so, providing a viable alternative to disrupt WWE's monopoly in North American wrestling. Wrestlers have been unafraid to leave WWE to jump into Tony Khan's company, or join after being released from WWE.
A wrestler's debut can set the tone for their run in the company. As we saw with Miro, a lackluster debut kickstarted an underwhelming first few months for the Bulgarian Brute before he established himself as a monster heel. A great debut can establish a wrestler as a top star immediately not to mention the excitement and anticipation generated as a result.
Malakai Black's debut fits the latter, as people couldn't get enough of him. Black is just one of many memorable debuts in AEW. Let's look at the top five of them.
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#5. Mr. Brodie Lee introduced on AEW Dynamite as the Exalted One
The Dark Order was meandering on AEW. It had little direction, but constantly spoke of the Exalted One.
Finally, he showed up. And what a moment it was! SoCal Uncensored hit the ring to mock Dark Order's Evil Uno and Stu Grayson and claimed there was no Exalted One.
Suddenly a video played, with a distorted voice and a creature appeared in a white hoodie. When the camera zoomed in, it was former WWE Tag Team Champion Luke Harper or, as he was called in AEW, Mr. Brodie Lee. As soon as the camera returned to the ring, Lee was in the ring and took out Christopher Daniels.
In just one segment, Brodie Lee was established as a danger to everyone in AEW, and Dark Order went from just another faction to one of the most dangerous ones as it attacked the AEW World Champion Jon Moxley.
#4. Matt Hardy joins AEW to help The Elite
Matt Hardy's debut on AEW was heavily rumored for long, especially because of the hints dropped on Hardy's YouTube channel and the weekly Being The Elite episodes.
During the final segment of the first AEW Dynamite episode without crowds, Matt Jackson revealed that he had asked an old friend for help to make it an even five-versus-five against the Inner Circle. A drone landed in the ring as the camera panned out to the stands in Daily's Place.
Matt Hardy appeared and teleported to different parts of the arena as the commentators couldn't believe what they were seeing. Even Chris Jericho stood in disbelief and looked like he saw a ghost. It was later revealed that Matt Hardy was the last member for the Blood and Guts match.
While the match didn't take place, Matt Hardy's debut holds significance as the two factions had the iconic Stadium Stampede match at AEW Double or Nothing.
#3. The Icon Sting saves Cody Rhodes on AEW
At AEW Winter is Coming, Darby Allin and Cody Rhodes faced Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks. The babyfaces were victorious but had no time to celebrate as Brian Cage entered the ring and a beatdown followed.
Just as Hobbs was preparing to hit Rhodes with the FTW Championship, the lights went out and a winter-themed video played on the titantron. Not many knew what was going on until Tony Schiavone yelled, "It's Stiiiiiiiing!!!"
The heels scampered away as Sting, making his first appearance on TNT in nearly 20 years, came face to face with Arn Anderson. He slowly made his way back as snow fell in the arena. The visual presentation of Stinger's debut was stunning and got the entire wrestling universe buzzing. Sting had signed a full-time contract with AEW.
He would go on to make his in-ring return in an entertaining tag team match alongside Darby Allin against 'Men of the Year' Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page. Under his wing, Allin has become an even bigger star.
The moment, imagery, and the aftermath make Sting's debut one of the best in AEW. One can only imagine how loud the pop would have been had it been a full arena jam-packed with fans.
#2. Malakai Black attacks Nightmare Family on AEW Road Rager
AEW returned to the road and presented Road Rager from Miami. From the beginning of the show, there were brief blackouts in the arena and the commentators alluded it to technical issues caused by bad weather and storms.
Arn Anderson was in the ring when it happened again. This time, however, the lights came back to reveal Malakai Black was in the ring. Three seconds later Arn was laid out with a Black Mass. Cody Rhodes entered the ring, confused about what was happening. Black offered a handshake but delivered another Black Mass before exiting the ring.
The crowd went nuts during the segment, elevating the debut even more. Fans and wrestlers on social media went just as crazy.
The debut was an unexpected one as most were under the impression that Black would have to wait out his mandatory 90-day non-compete clause. Apparently, an error caused his clause to expire in 30 days, allowing AEW to snap him up and get him on their show. Black is destined for great things and his debut couldn't have been any better.
#1. Jon Moxley takes out Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega at AEW Double or Nothing
The main event of the first ever AEW pay-per-view saw Kenny Omega lose to Chris Jericho in an excellent match. As Jericho celebrated, somebody was spotted walking in the crowd and approaching the ring.
It was none other than Jon Moxley, formerly Dean Ambrose in WWE. The crowd became unglued as fans lost their minds during the unannounced appearance of the hottest free agent in professional wrestling.
Moxley stalked Jericho and laid him out with a Paradigm Shift before shifting his attention towards Omega. The pair brawled all the way up to the stack of giant poker chips where Jon Moxley spiked Omega with a Paradigm Shift to close out arguably the best pay-per-view across all companies in 2019.
Moxley had asked to be released from WWE after having creative differences with the company. He was a huge name and AEW wasted no time in turning him All Elite. Till date, Moxley remains their biggest acquisition and his debut will always be iconic due to the time, place and the fan reaction that accompanied it.
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