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AEW continued their build towards their upcoming All Out pay-per-view on this week's Dynamite, emanating from Houston, Texas. On top of that, the company also unveiled the entire match card for this week's episode of AEW Rampage: The First Dance.
The show kickstarted tonight with Sting and Darby Allin featuring in a Texas Tornado Tag Team match and closing out with a conclusive finish to the long-running rivalry between MJF and Chris Jericho. Fans brought another level of excitement to the show with their wild reactions throughout the night.
With that said, let's take a look at the best and worst of AEW Dynamite for an in-depth analysis of the show. If you disagree with any of the points presented below, do let us know in the comments section.
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#5 Best: Sting single-handedly wins Tornado Tag Team match for his team on AEW Dynamite
Sting and Darby Allin's incredible victory over 2.0 (Jeff Parker and Matt Lee) in a Tornado Tag Team match raised the bar for the show. The WCW legend undoubtedly became the star of the night in his first match on TNT for over two decades.
The show was initially supposed to open with Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston. However, Daniel Garcia and 2.0 assaulted them viciously and prompted their opponents to come out for the match. The bout delivered on the hype surrounding the special stipulation.
Both teams took their fight to the spectators' area, which saw 2.0 gain a numbers advantage due to the presence of Daniel Garcia. But Eddie Kingston emerged out of nowhere to take him out of the equation.
Parker and Lee dominated Darby Allin in the ring to carry the pace of the match. However, the whole complexion of the match changed once the former TNT champion tagged Sting in. Although the Icon took an earth-shattering powerbomb onto the table, his ''no-sell'' of the move gave goosebumps to anyone watching.
The former WWE Superstar then delivered a double Scorpion death drop to 2.0, followed by a double Scorpion Deathlock which prompted the opponents to tap out simultaneously.
AEW star Sting showed no signs of ring rust and silenced his critics with another remarkable performance. He's truly an inspiration for the entire AEW locker room.
#4 Worst: Lance Archer's storyline with Dan Lambert on AEW Dynamite
Given how the company booked AEW star Lance Archer with Jon Moxley and Hikuleo, his current storyline with Dan Lambert isn't what everyone anticipated for the Murderhawk Monster.
A vengeful Lambert brought backup this week in the form of two former UFC heavyweight champions - Junior Dos Santos and Andrei Arlovski. Lambert once again bad-mouthed the AEW universe for faking their wrestling passion and called out the company for joining the 'cancel culture train.'
Upon hearing his wild accusations, Lance Archer appeared only to be ambushed by Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky.
The fact that fans didn't even get to see Archer engaging in a brawl with the UFC fighters is a big letdown. AEW star Lance Archer has been receiving an on-and-off push for almost a year. His feud with Lambert could potentially be construed as a filler storyline to keep him on TV.
#3 Best: Jurassic Express' nail-biting performance despite coming up short
The Young Bucks' tag team title defense against Jurassic Express intrigued everyone on this week's show. Both teams tore the house down after laying their impressive arsenal in front of the audience.
Jungle Boy was, as usual, was delightful to watch. But AEW's Luchasaurus grabbed much of the spotlight by showcasing his durability against the Jackson brothers. At one point, the Jurassic Express almost pinned the Young Bucks.
There were many more close falls to such an extent that it forced people to pop out of their seats every time. In the end, Nick and Matt Jackson retained their titles as expected.
However, they got assistance from all the members of The Elite, from Kenny Omega to even Nakazawa interfering to turn things upside down for the babyfaces.
Although IMPACT Wrestling World Champion Christian Cage tried to even the odds, the numbers game caught up with him as well. Captain Charisma suffered a massive beatdown from Kenny Omega to close things out.
#2 Worst: AEW star Chris Jericho taps out to MJF during the main event
During the main event, AEW star MJF defeated Chris Jericho to conclude their months-long feud. It wasn't their match that disappointed the fans, rather the finish, which saw Chris Jericho tapping out to MJF's armbar submission.
Fans were left stunned as we rarely witnessed The Demo God giving up in his matches. It is ironic that the former WWE superstar overcame all four labours that involved barbarity at its peak and fell short to one submission maneuver.
Even though MJF was the favorite to win the rubber match against Chris Jericho, the company could have planned a better finish here.
Given how people were waiting with bated breath at the beginning of this storyline, it somehow didn't maintain the same hype towards the tail end. Nevertheless, both men should now move forward in separate directions.
With AEW All Out fast approaching, fans can expect either man to compete in one of the marquee matches on the show.
#1 Best/Worst: Paul Wight's underwhelming first feud in AEW
It's official! Paul Wight will face The Factory's QT Marshall in a singles match at All Out next month. The company emphasized the momentum of Paul Wight's return and put him in a confrontation with QT Marshall this week.
QT Marshall verbally berated the former WWE superstar by showing him pictures of his body stitches and even humiliated him by saying that Tony Khan hired him as an analyst, not a wrestler.
This prompted Paul Wight to backfire and announce that Marshall will be his first opponent in AEW. As excited as it sounds to see Paul Wight get back inside the squared circle, his opponent isn't at the same level.
Their feud is more predictable and one-sided. AEW could have inserted someone like Miro or Lance Archer to face Paul Wight, given the size of these men. Regardless, the match is now set in stone.
Both Wight and Marshall seem laser-focused on delivering a compelling storyline as well as an impeccable match. With The Factory members in Marshall's corner, the bout at All out could involve a lot of chaos, which would be fun to watch.
Check out the video below, where Sportskeeda's Rick Ucchino and Kevin Kellam break down everything that happened on AEW Dynamite as well as WWE NXT:
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