From a Tornado Tag Team Main Event featuring Jon Moxley to MJF's state of wrestling address during the show, this week's edition of AEW Dynamite featured many contrasting moments.
AEW delivered another two-hour action-packed edition of Dynamite, which may not be on par with recent episodes, but was still quite good from an overall standpoint. The company also confirmed a few important angles for future AEW programming while also being newsworthy at the same time.
What were your thoughts on this episode? How did NXT fare against AEW in terms of quality this week? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Here are the five biggest news stories from this week's episode of AEW Dynamite (July 29, 2020).
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#5: Matt Cardona (Zack Ryder) and Ariane (WWE's Cameron) are now All Elite
While several released WWE Superstars went ahead and joined IMPACT Wrestling, Matt Cardona, formerly known as Zack Ryder, made his first AEW appearance on this week's episode of Dynamite.
Cody wrestled WARHORSE with the TNT Championship at stake, and the match itself was a decent back-and-forth contest, even though many hardcore fans had hyped this bout heading into last night's show.
After Cody successfully defended his title, members of the Dark Order attacked the TNT Champion, until Ryder crashed the assault and saved his real-life friend from those Dark Order goons.
Not only is Matt Cardona AEW bound, but he will be making his in-ring debut with the company next week.
Later in the episode, Nyla Rose picked her random partner for AEW's upcoming Women's Tag Team Cup Tournament, and that partner turned out to be Ariane, whom WWE fans knew as Cameron back when she tagged with Naomi.
While Naomi went on to become a known personality in WWE, this can be Cameron's chance to shine as Ariane on AEW Dynamite.
#4: Arn Anderson teased the formation of AEW's version of The Four Horsemen
Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler officially signed with AEW in a video that aired during this week's episode of Dynamite.
The setting looked professional, and unexpectedly, Arn Anderson joined the duo as well. Later, Hagman Page entered the scene to celebrate FTR's AEW contract signing with a few drinks.
Dax from FTR is well-known as a huge fan of Arn Anderson, and over the past few weeks, the FTR duo has pursued Hangman Page as a friend, even though the latter is currently one-half of the AEW Tag Team Champions alongside Kenny Omega.
The rumors of a modern Four Horsemen stable have become noticeable especially since AEW arrived in the Pro-Wrestling world.
The original group consisted of Ric Flair, Arn Anderson, Ole Anderson, and Tully Blanchard, and we know that FTR will fulfill the role of an old-school tag team if the new Four Horsemen rumors are true.
With Hangman Page being a third member, who do you think will be the fourth member of this stable?
In my opinion, Cody could be that fourth person, especially when you consider the fact that Arn Anderson is his current mentor.
#3: MJF challenged Jon Moxley in a segment where he took several shots at WWE and AEW
AEW fans know MJF as one of the brightest young heels on the roster at the moment.
But the fact remains that not every young talent in AEW will evolve into being a megastar. However, MJF's recent antics, as well as his segment from last night's AEW Dynamite prove that MJF can fulfill that role when the company's veterans eventually step down.
The State of Wrestling address saw MJF calling out the company for not living up to its name as an alternative to the biggest Pro-Wrestling show on the planet, and there were references made to Hulk Hogan and "Stone Cold" Steve Austin as well.
While taking cheap shots at a rival company doesn't always go down well with the fans, MJF did a great job in terms of character this week.
Towards the end, MJF challenged Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship at All Out, and judging by this week's episode, MJF and Moxley's feud should be a treat to watch.
#2: Chris Jericho and Orange Cassidy will debate it out before facing each other in a rematch
AEW Dynamite kicked off with a huge 10-Man Tag Team Contest this week.
Best Friends & Friends (Chuckie T, Trent, Orange Cassidy, Jungle Boy, Luchasaurus) took on The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Santana, Ortiz, Sammy Guevara, Jake Hager), where the finish saw Matt Hardy distracting Guevera to ensure that Jericho's crew would lose.
We already had a Tornado Tag Team Main Event on this week's AEW Dynamite, but the opening bout felt like it had a Tornado Tag Team stipulation too, as Jim Ross pointed out. That made the match more engaging than it may have been if not for the leniency shown by the referee, but moments like these inadvertently create more room for leniency in every normal AEW match.
After suffering a loss, Jericho and his boys came out later in the night as The Demo God challenged Cassidy to a debate on next week's AEW Dynamite.
We know how entertaining Jericho can be in segments like these, so the upcoming episode should be a fun stop for this feud before Jericho and Cassidy's rematch takes place on August 12th.
#1: Darby Allin was confirmed to be Jon Moxley's next challenger just after the main event
Blood was spilled towards the end of this week's AEW Dynamite when Darby Allin teamed up with Jon Moxley against Ricky Starks and Brian Cage in a Tornado Tag Team Match.
The big spot in this contest occurred when Allin introduced a customized skateboard that had thumbtacks attached to it. Allin used the skateboard for a top-rope move that saw him jamming the board on the back of Ricky Starks for a pinfall victory.
Moments after the match ended, Moxley and Allin had a small showdown as the commentary team informed viewers that Darby Allin would be facing the AEW World Champion on next week's episode.
This was a good booking decision that swerved AEW fans at the last moment. MJF was established as Moxley's main challenger now, but Darby Allin turned out to be Moxley's next opponent at the end of this episode.
AEW All Out will take place in September, but it looks like the company has already built up some excitement for their upcoming slate of shows.