AEW Dynamite Review - May 6, 2020

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Cody def. Joey JAnela

Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of Janela's hardcore style, but I give him major props for not only holding his own in this standard singles match with Cody but also putting in a terrific performance. This was an excellent opener that I didn't have high hopes for coming into the show yet it ultimately exceeded my expectations. Both Cody and Lance Archer are riding a wave of momentum into Double or Nothing, so I'm very interested to see who reigns supreme as the inaugural AEW TNT Champion.

AEW Women's Champion Nyla Rose def. Kenzie Paige (Non-Title)

The commentators noted how Paige is only 18-years-old, which is almost unbelievable. Props to her for the beating she took here from Rose, but this was all about reestablishing Rose as a force to be reckoned with. Remember, it's been a while since we last saw her, so this was necessary. Next week's four-way match between Britt Baker, Hikaru Shida, Kris Statlander and Penelope Ford should give us a better idea of who her opponent will be at Double or Nothing.

AEW World Champion Jon Moxley def. Frankie Kazarian (Non-title)

Kazarian mentioned on Twitter that it had been 480 days since his last singles match. Damn, that's a long time! It doesn't feel that long, but I'm glad he got the chance to shine here against the AEW World Champion. Of course, the outcome was never in doubt, but they had a well-wrestled match and made the most of the time they had. The Dark Order's attack on Moxley afterward sets the stage for Moxley to defend his AEW World Championship against Brodie Lee at Double or Nothing. I'm looking forward to it, but I feel it's too soon for Lee to be in the title picture as neither guy should be losing right now.

Lance Archer def. QT Marshall

I loved this for a few reasons. Firstly, Archer annihilating people will never get old. Secondly, it made perfect sense with Marshall being a close friend of Cody and Archer already destroying Dustin Rhodes last week. This was exactly what it needed to be: complete destruction. The post-match segment was even better with Jake Roberts laying his snake down on Brandi Rhodes' face while she was incapacitated. Jim Ross said on commentary that the locker rooms are on the other side of the building and that's why Cody couldn't save her. I appreciate the explanation.

Le Sex Gods (Chris Jericho & Sammy Guevara) def. AEW World Tag Team Champion Kenny Omega & "Broken" Matt Hardy in a Street Fight

This was different than your typical Street Fight in that it wasn't just a glorified No Holds Barred bout. Rather, they literally took their fight to the concourse of the arena and went all out. It won't be for everyone, but this was wildly entertaining and a total blast. Hardy switching up his attire multiple times throughout (to indicate he was changing personas) was a nice touch and his use of the golf cart (nearly killing Guevara at one point) was fantastic. If we aren't getting Blood and Guts for a while, this was a smart way of furthering the feud between The Elite and The Inner Circle in the meantime.

Overall Show

I don't know if it was the safest thing to do, but Dynamite was much better this week than it has been in over a month due to the change in atmosphere and more people being available to use. There was build for Double or Nothing, but the issue is that it's supposed to be their biggest pay-per-view of the year and most of the matches outside of Cody vs. Archer feel random. Moxley vs. Lee is a bit too soon in my opinion and MJF vs. Jungle Boy came out of nowhere. The Ladder match should be cool, but I honestly don't look at this Double or Nothing card being worth $50 bucks. Thankfully, this was a strong show with the wrestling delivering, storylines progressing and some top-notch promos to boot.