From a new potential Inner Circle recruit being teased to an important female star making her in-ring comeback, this week's edition of AEW Dynamite featured many contrasting moments.
The wrestling is always good on Wednesday Night Dynamite, but last night's episode revealed certain flaws in terms of booking decisions. AEW's approach to storytelling was a hit-and-miss attempt this week. With Full Gear slated for November, a few storylines are shaping up to culminate at AEW's upcoming event.
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 (September 30, 2020).
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#5: Dr. Britt Baker made her in-ring return on AEW Dynamite this week
Although Britt Baker did face Big Swole in a Tooth and Nail Cinematic Match at AEW All Out, Baker returned to actual in-ring action on this week's Dynamite.
She fought Red Velvet, who doesn't exactly have a stellar win-loss record in AEW so far. But the match did its job in establishing Britt Baker's dominance across the Women's Division.
After the match was over, Baker executed a Lockjaw on her helpless opponent. This way, Dr. Britt Baker made an important statement on last night's AEW Dynamite.
Even though the female stars of AEW have a long journey ahead, there are a few distinct themes that can be seen across the Women's Division. Hikaru Shida and Thunder Rosa's program is it's own thing, and so is Anna Jay's feud with Brandi Rhodes which a consequence of the TNT Title storyline.
Meanwhile, Britt Baker is one of the most interesting characters on AEW TV right now. It will be interesting to see what's next in store for her on Dynamite.
#4: AEW built towards an FTR vs The Young Bucks match as more tag team drama went down in this episode
With FTR's heel shenanigans and The Young Bucks' new attitude, a match between both teams seems more than ideal heading into AEW Full Gear.
This week, The Young Bucks super-kicked Tony Schiavone when the latter was interviewing the AEW Tag Team Champions in a backstage segment. Jim Ross and Excalibur did not condone this newfound aggression from Matt and Nick Jackson on commentary.
Although Best Friends recently won a hard-fought hardcore main event on AEW Dynamite, they had to wait their turn as FTR faced SCU in back-and-forth tag team action this week.
Given the heat and humidity that AEW stars experience in the arena, FTR and SCU put on a solid contest against each other. However, Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler prevailed as the victors via Tully Blanchard's help from ringside.
Meanwhile, it doesn't look like Hangman Page and Kenny Omega will be getting back into the tag team game anytime soon. Page seemed surprised when it was revealed on commentary that Kenny Omega will be taking part in a singles tournament to determine a deserving candidate for Jon Moxley's World title.
#3: Jon Moxley faced The Butcher in an impromptu main event with the AEW World Title at stake
Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston had a good match against each other on last week's AEW Dynamite, but Kingston wasn't done with Moxley in this episode.
Kingston and The Lucha Bros. came out with the referee who had called for the bell when Kingston was trapped in a Bulldog Choke last week. Kingston claimed he didn't tap out or quit while being on the receiving end of Moxley's submission move.
Before Kingston and The Lucha Bros. could attack the referee, Moxley came out with a barbed wire baseball bat. Kingston revealed that he wasn't looking for a rematch because The Blade would be Moxley's impromptu challenger for the night.
Now, impromptu world title matches are more often than not a treat to watch in AEW, but The Butcher's style simply didn't gel properly with Moxley's in-ring game. The AEW World Champion scored a win with the Bulldog Choke, as expected, and the Butcher clearly tapped out in this case.
Plans for Jon Moxley would have been different if Lance Archer hadn't been sidelined recently, but AEW can definitely do better than Jon Moxley's arc from this week's episode.
#2: MJF teased joining Chris Jericho's Inner Circle on AEW Dynamite
MJF and Chris Jericho's backstage segments have been nothing but exceptional in AEW. The basic premise of putting two self-absorbed heel characters in a conversation together has been a hit so far.
It's almost as if Chris Jericho and MJF's characters secretly hate each other, but their vain personas allow them no choice but to complement each other's egos at the same time.
MJF brought some personalized gifts for every member of The Inner Circle, except Sammy Guevara. Given the nature of his gimmick, it's very likely that MJF did that on purpose.
Jericho asked if MJF wanted to join the Inner Circle, and MJF replied by framing the same question in a different manner right back at The Demo God. This went on for a while until things got heated between Wardlow and Jake Hager.
Before leaving, MJF congratulated Jericho for his upcoming 30-year anniversary in pro-wrestling. The current storyline here hints towards MJF joining the inner Circle. But it's unlikely that will happen because MJF and Jericho can't co-exist together in the long run.
Meanwhile, Jericho defeated Isiah Kassidy of the Street Profits in a good match, but the latter star was showcased under positive light on AEW Dynamite. The Demo God also kickstarted a feud with Dr. Luther on the same episode, and some fans are split over this random decision since it may steal focus from Le Champion's special episode on next week's AEW Dynamite.
#1: Cody accepted Brodie Lee's challenge for a 'Dog Collar Match' on next week's AEW Dynamite
Cody revealed that the mental challenge of being squashed by Brodie Lee was more problematic than the physical consequences of losing the TNT Title to Brodie Lee on AEW Dynamite.
Cody later went on to accept The Exalted One's challenge for a Dog Collar Match. This is certainly a big rematch that deserves main event treatment on the upcoming edition of AEW Dynamite.
A huge brawl broke out when Brodie Lee came out to attack Cody. Both men had to be separated during various instances. Even Brandi Rhodes got involved, and Anna Jay of the Dark Order started brawling with her separately.
It's pretty apparent now that the TNT Title feud has risen to the occasion ever since Jon Moxley's AEW World Title feud with Lance Archer got compromised recently.
Aside from that, AEW fans have been split over Miro's booking every week. Some viewers appreciate that Miro is allowed to portray his real-self on Wednesday Night Dynamite, but others don't really want to see Miro in a cheesy wedding-related storyline after that disastrous love triangle program with Bobby Lashley and Lana in WWE.