Wrestling fans around the globe have been clamoring for elite wrestling action and storylines for quite a while now. As WWE has done a tremendous job at getting their viewers to change the channel on their remote controls over the past several years. However, on Wednesday night, that all changed. For the first time since their launch back in January, All Elite Wrestling (AEW), backed by Jacksonville Jaguars Owner and current President, Tony Khan, AEW officially launch AEW “Dynamite” last night in Washington, D.C.
A weekly television series that airs on TNT, is now officially competing with Triple H’s WWE “NXT” program, that airs at the same time on Wednesday nights on the USA Network.
In their first ever head-to-head meeting, Triple H (WWE) and Cody Rhodes (AEW) brought out the absolute best in each other’s brands, by putting together two highly entertaining wrestling shows that saw epic debuts, returns and of course, matches!
With both promotions officially at war on Wednesday nights, let’s take a look at key factors that made each show the success that it was:
Hot Starts
In both “Dynamite” and “NXT”, wrestling fans around the globe got to witness epic beginnings to each show, with an epic return on Triple H’s brand and a monumental storyline kicking off Tony Khan’s show.
On NXT, current NXT Champion Adam Cole was met in the middle of the ring with a returning Finn Balor, who had been out of action since WWE SummerSlam, after losing to “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt.
The former Universal Champion’s return to NXT marks the first time Balor has stepped foot in an NXT ring since he was called up to the main roster back in the summer of 2016.
Balor went on to become the first-ever WWE Universal Champion, before vacating it due to a shoulder injury that sidelined him for 8 months, ending his only real push on the main roster. With his return to NXT, Balor can once again return to main event status.
While Finn Balor was shocking the WWE Universe in Orlando, Chris Jericho and Cody Rhodes were kicking off their AEW Championship feud with a bang in Washington D.C., as Jericho interrupted a post-match handshake between Cody and Sammy Guevara.
After defeating Guevara in a great back-and-forth opening contest, Sammy congratulated Cody in the middle of the ring with a handshake, that soon turned into a beatdown, when the “Painmaker” made his presence known for the first time on TNT.
This opening storyline kicks off Dynamite with a bang, as Jericho and Rhodes are set to face off in arguably the most-anticipated match in AEW’s short history at AEW Full Gear in November.
Highly-Entertaining Competition
Both promotions lived up to their expectations, when delivering high-flying, acrobatic and insanely athletic wrestling, including an epic NXT Women’s Championship match and an AEW Women’s Championship match.
Riho faced off against Nyla Rose in a highy-anticapted showdown on Dynamite Wednesday night, with Riho becoming the first-ever AEW Women’s Champion in a terrific back-and-forth contest.
After picking up momentum over Rose, Riho put the nail in the coffin when hitting Rose with double knees to the face for the pinball, as AEW continues to layout the platform for their brand-new World championships.
In Orlando, NXT was setting the bar high, with elite performances from Johnny Gargano and Shane Thorne in one-on-one action, as well as Candice LeRae and Shayna Baszler in their NXT Women’s title match.
Pete Dunn was also in action taking on Danny Burch, which turned out to be one of the best matches of the evening with Dunn picking up the victory.
Shocking & Satisfying Endings
Despite both shows living up to their full potentials, both promotions also pulled off two shocking twists to send fans home thrilled, yet asking questions.
On NXT, Triple H was able to pull off the shocker of the year, in bringing back former NXT Champion, Tommaso Ciampa, who had been sidelined with a neck injury for months, forcing him to vacate his NXT Championship.
In the show’s final stare down, Adam Cole starred into the eyes of a vengeful Ciampa, looking to reclaim the title that he never lost, as the likes of Finn Balor and Johnny Garagano also lurk in the shadows.
Back in Washington D.C. however, Tony Khan and Cody Rhodes were able to reel in another big fish, as in the show’s main event that pitted Chris Jericho, Santana and Ortiz up against Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks, things turned sour real quick.
After not being seen since his epic match with Joey Janela at AEW Fighter Fest, Jon Moxley returned to AEW television to sneak attack Kenny Omega, building up their future clash at AEW Full Gear, while Chris Jericho and company took care of business in the ring.
While Jericho, Santana and Ortiz celebrated the victory, Cody looked to get the last laugh by attacking the current AEW Champion, as his brother, Dustin Rhodes, quickly backed him with the Rhodes and The Young Bucks taking it to the trio, until another debut occurred.
For the first time since leaving WWE in 2017, Jack Swagger returned to Professional Wrestling to dismantle Dustin and Cody Rhodes, as AEW reals in yet another big fish, looking to contend with WWE. Swagger was last seen fighting in Bellator (MMA) in a successful manner, winning his debut fight in 2018.
With Swagger now in the mix, look for the former WWE Champion to clash with Dustin Rhodes at AEW Full Gear, as All Elite Wrestling proves to be a real threat to WWE loyal fan base.
Whether your watching WWE NXT or AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights, you will be entertained. So why not watch both? Triple H battling Cody Rhodes for better ratings is set to bring out the absolute best in both promotions, the overall wrestling and the overall wrestling community.
