We’re back with another edition of AEW Dynamite with this week’s episode being a special 30-year celebration of one of the greatest professional wrestlers in the world, Chris Jericho. Featuring AEW’s first-ever Dog Collar Match between Cody and Brodie Lee for the TNT Championship and a main event featuring “Le Champion” himself, the company set the stage for next week’s huge anniversary show.
#3 The FTW Championship Finally Gets Defended
I’ve been the biggest detractor to the FTW Championship since it was introduced into AEW and given to Brian Cage. The title was hardly used in ECW and was given to Cage out of the blue. However, we finally got to see the title defended here as Cage took on up-and-comer Will Hobbs. This was just two powerful guys beating the hell out of each other, and I loved it. The continued storyline between Cage, Ricky Starks and Darby Allin got an added wrinkle with Tazz offering Hobbs a spot in his group, without the big man giving him a solid answer. I’m looking forward to seeing if Hobbs will turn on Allin in the coming weeks and join Tazz, giving him a bigger chance to shine. This was a really solid opener to the show and hopefully it will lead to more FTW title defenses.
#2 Luther Earns the Spotlight
On a night celebrating the career of Chris Jericho, the show built to its announced main event of Jericho and Jake Hager taking on Luther and Serpentico. Luther, a legend in Japanese wrestling, has been a major part of Jericho’s career despite never getting to any of the top promotions in the states. That changed here with Luther getting the top spot on the card and delivering. I haven’t seen much of Luther’s career, but I really AEW giving him the opportunity to be introduced to a wider audience. This match was nothing special, but giving Jericho and Luther the chance to showcase why they are some of the most respected individuals in the business helps it earn the second spot on this week’s list.
#1 The Resurrection of Cody
When Cody won the TNT Championship at Double or Nothing, his open challenge was a must-watch each week. Featuring stars like Eddie Kingston, Ricky Starks and Scorpio Sky, the open challenge was normally the best match of the night. However, when Mr. Brodie Lee decimated Cody and the entire Rhodes family, you knew that there would be hell to pay whenever he returned. Accepting a Dog Collar match on last week’s edition of Dynamite, Cody came to play here in a brutal match. This was everything you could have wanted from this rivalry with the two competitors giving each other everything they had. The Dog Collar match is hardly used in professional wrestling, but it was used to perfection here. Cody needed and got the win here to get revenge on Lee, but I’m hoping next week’s match with Orange Cassidy is the end of Cody’s reign. Cody doesn’t need to hold the title and giving it to Cassidy would open up a lot of opportunities. I can’t wait to see this feud between Cody and Lee continue because I’m sure this won’t be the last brutal match we see between the two.
And that wraps up the special 30-year celebration of Chris Jericho. Be sure to come back next week for my review of the AEW Dynamite Anniversary show!
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