AEW Dynamite Week 2 - 9th October 2019

[KawadaSmile]

Didn't watch the whole show, but my timeline was flooded with AEW gifs.

Two things, though: 

1. Darby Allin skating down the ramp to clock Jericho;
2. Orange Cassidy just being himself

They are the kinds of things that make the wrestlers popular. Orange's whole aesthetic is incredible, and I've seen many non-watchers gif the no-hands plancha and say "yo this guy is cold as ice" or something like that. He's bound to become a very popular meme wrestler, and that's far from being bad.

Darby Allin, with stuff like that, might go the same route. It's fresh, and cool, and attracts the right demo.

 

The only real negative is that Omega looks more and more like a nerd.

[Tenese Sarwieh]

Another great edition of dynamite. Everything they did accomplished it's goal of wanting me to come back for more. Private Party had a star making performance with the Bucks doing whatever they can to get them over as such. Also it's been fun watching Jericho mix it up with these crop of fresh faces on this stage and I expect great with him and Allin next week.   

[sek69]

3 hours ago, KawadaSmile said:

The only real negative is that Omega looks more and more like a nerd.

Dave actually talked about that on the last WO radio show, Kenny and the Bucks are big on not wanting to come off as office guys who put themselves over everyone to the point it's hurting their potential to be big stars. He specifically mentioned it being the big reason Kenny has way less of the aura he did in Japan and how the Bucks wanted to lose every match they've been in so far.

[Stiva]

Everyone interacting with everybody else is filling my heart with glee. For far too long, TV wrestling feuds have been self-contained to the wrestlers in that feud but that show closing angle with everything spilling over was amazing. Props to The Bucks for putting in an unbelievable performance; they actually came across as the best team in the company who got caught by the young prodigies and, in the process, have blown what looked like a predictable tournament wide open. Everything on this show worked, it was a real killer night.

[FMKK]

17 minutes ago, sek69 said:

Dave actually talked about that on the last WO radio show, Kenny and the Bucks are big on not wanting to come off as office guys who put themselves over everyone to the point it's hurting their potential to be big stars. He specifically mentioned it being the big reason Kenny has way less of the aura he did in Japan and how the Bucks wanted to lose every match they've been in so far.

The Bucks have said things about, for example, never wanting to do ladder matches again so I'm wondering if they want to use themselves to get enough teams over to the extent that they can have a strong tag division without them so they can be part time attractions in a year or two down the line.

What time for the ratings btw?

[Strummer]

AEW:  1.018 million viewers

NXT:   790,000 viewers

[fakeplastictrees]

This is all from PW Torch's Twitter:

True TV simulcast of Dynamite drew 122,000, so live/same-night-DVR viewership was a smaller drop-off overall. 1.140 million in total viewers is more accurate comparison to 1.409, it appears.

Downloads for Tuesday's night's premieres of NWA Powerr and AEW Dark on YouTube... As of now, about 44 hours after premiere, 272K for NWA and 562K for AEW Dark. Both impressive numbers out of the gate.

The Raw 50+ rating was 1.05. AEW's was 0.03!!! But male 18-34 Raw was 0.69 compared to AEW 0.48.

https://twitter.com/PWTorch

[FMKK]

1.14 isn't bad for week two if it can stabilize around that. Crazy that there's such a divergence in the demos. AEW absolutely destroys NXT under 34 but the over 50 fanbase barely exists.

[WingedEagle]

Last night completely sold me on this show and promotion.  I LOVED it .

- The opening tag was an incredibly hot, perfect way to open TV and establish Private Party.

- Jericho's promo was awesome and did a great job fleshing out characters for him and his group.

- The women's tag was fun and I thought it was the best that Bea Priestley has looked thus far in the company.

- Loved the main event and almost every aspect of the post-match.  Dustin's hot tag was so great, so well built and such a breath of fresh air while at the same time a nice throwback.  Jericho and Guevara never wavered from working as and looking like absolute heels.  Darby's skateboard entrance.  MJF's save and subtle teases of his eventual turn before and after the save.  I still don't think he's anything special in the ring, but as a character, - and especially in *this* role - he's been great.  

More than anything I love how a few, choice stories/feuds are being built.  Private Party's elevation.  Pac/Omega/Moxley.  Jericho/Cody.  Jericho/Darby.  Jericho's crew vs. babyfaces at large. 

Its so nice to watch a wrestling show with simple, clear feuds, agendas and roles.  The show flew by, and perhaps most importantly, began and ended with something awesome.  Tough to complain about a show like that even if there were things I didn't care for or just didn't connect.  Jimmy Havoc is a zero for me.  He looks and works minor league and doesn't belong in HD on a prominent station.  Moxley/Spears wasn't particularly heated and did nothing to grab my attention.  The post-match with Omega and the weapons reeked of WWE until Pac's sudden interjection breathed life into it.  I thought every match other than the main event probably went a few minutes too long, but those are kinks they can easily work out.  Less is more, and in this case not shoehorning in a ton of matches is for the better, even if those they deliver are a little long.  Everything has time to breathe.

I didn't think I'd be so into the company based on the few clips I'd seen of BTE and what I'd read about it as absolutely nothing on there was of interest to me, but this has been terrific through 2 weeks.  All the more impressive that they've been patient and resisted hotshotting anything.

 

[Mad Dog]

5 minutes ago, FMKK said:

1.14 isn't bad for week two if it can stabilize around that. Crazy that there's such a divergence in the demos. AEW absolutely destroys NXT under 34 but the over 50 fanbase barely exists.

I'm guessing AEW's audience crosses over with Rick and Morty fans more than it does with NXT. It just seems like the shows have completely different fanbases.

[FMKK]

Was the baseball yesterday a big deal? I'm sure that impacted both if so.

[Mad Dog]

1 minute ago, FMKK said:

Was the baseball yesterday a big deal? I'm sure that impacted both if so.

Game 5 of Dodgers/Nats so it was a big deal.

[sek69]

Yeah baseball would have put a dent in both shows.

[Steve T]

I am really enjoying AEW so far. Solid wrestling, solid stories and solid announcing. Not much to complain about so far. 

If it were me I would throw a squash match or two in to each show and add a short promo (or two.) I worry about burning out every possible fued/match combination, they don't have a big roster. 

Also, I forgot how good Tony Schiavone is at getting both guys in a match over. Not sure every announcer realizes their job is to get both wrestlers, the match and any applicable storylines over. Tony does. 

[El-P]

I'm not gonna pile up on what's already been said. I loved the show. After two weeks of TV, AEW becomes officially my favourite promotion today. 

Every segment makes you forget about the previous one because of how good it is. Its flows so easily, there's no dead time, no piss-break match. Love the way things are building with simple logic. Love the fact they aren't afraid of pushing guys in the 20's at the same time as featuring great veterans in their late 40's in the same match, as showed by the main event. When you see Dustin there and really think about how much he could have contributed in WWE but "he too old", it's crazy. So, they are even getting the best use of Jake Hager thus far. Jericho killed it on the mic. I'm stoked about the fact Emi Sakura of FMW fame (to me) was on my TV ruling it hard. Dr. Baker is slowly growing on me, I like the non-ironic dentist submission hold. Tully is crazy good as a manager (surprise surprise). Mox debut was excellent, I thought Spears really was game. What else, oh, yeah, that crazy ass opening tag match with the upset of the year. Again, not afraid to push young talent. That multiple diving sequence was bonkers. The Bucks are the new MX, oh, the irony. Jimmy Havoc in a straight wrestling match >>>> Jimmy Havoc doing comedy garbage in MLW. Darby Allin is gonna be a huge star, he's got unlimited potential. Kenny Omega channeling his inner Mick  Foley was quite interesting, a hardcore brawl against Mox would be insane. The ending angle reminded me of those super hot Nitro endings when the show was still fresh and new. I won't lie, I marked the hell out.

I must admit, not a huge fan of JR's work thus far (well, I never was). I would be quite happy with just Excalibur and Schiavone (who is really, really good here).

Also, when I hear Inner Circle, I think about black metal dudes shooting the shit in Helvetes, burning wood churches and eventaully Varg stabbing Euronymous 36 times in self-defense, but that's just me. It's a cool name for a heel faction.

Yeah, at this point, just call me a AEW mark like I was an ECW, ARSION and Lucha Underground mark. I don't mind at all.

[El-P]

7 minutes ago, Steve T said:

Also, I forgot how good Tony Schiavone is at getting both guys in a match over. Not sure every announcer realizes their job is to get both wrestlers, the match and any applicable storylines over. Tony does. 

This. I feel JR is talking too much over the other two. Tony is doing a masterful job pointing out details in characters, matches and angles to put the whole thing over. I can't believe it's 2019 and Tony Schiavone is back in the saddle in a hot new promotion and sounds like the great announcer he used to be. 

I wish they had someone like Don Callis. A bit heelish but not too much, with a good sense of wit. That's the only thing missing thus far.

[sek69]

If nothing else, I'm glad AEW exists to give Tony a second chance to be remembered as one of the better wrestling announcers instead of the guy fresh out of fucks to give in 2001 WCW.

[DMJ]

I don't know if the numbers exist (or, rather, how available they are), but I'd be curious to know what the age breakdown was during the Monday Night Wars. I think most people assume WCW was skewing older at first (94'-95') as WWE was doing their New Generation stuff and WCW featured Hogan, Flair, Savage, etc. at the top (plus, WCW still had that historical connection to NWA 'rasslin'). 

But I'm curious if things shifted around 96'-97' and WCW picked up more of the younger audience. Sure, you still had Hogan and Flair and Savage on top, but the midcard was really, really fresh. 

I bring this up just because, if I was the WWE, I'd be a bit worried. Not only because AEW is doing well with that key 18-34 demo, but because, I can easily foresee that 50+ crowd jumping ship as word spreads about Dynamite's quality. I mean, that Jericho promo was *exactly* the kind of promo that Jericho's biggest fans - who are all older views - want to see him do. 

As others have said, Tony Schiavone and Excalibur have done a great job on commentary and JR, well, not so much...but I'd still call this 3-man booth better than anything the WWE is offering currently. And, again, you've got two "names" that mean something to the 50+ crowd. I don't think the 50+ crowd particularly likes Corey Graves, but JR? He can kinda do no wrong to a segment of the audience.

So, sure, we know that right now AEW is doing a nice job bringing in younger viewers. But that 50+ crowd might be joining soon. The shows they're putting on have featured elements that appeal to those longtime WWE fans and, here's the key thing, they're doing those elements better than the WWE is right now. Jericho's promo in particular felt like the best in-ring promo I've seen anyone do in YEARS and that's saying something when, for awhile there, RAW would open with one every single week, 52 weeks a year. I mean, keep in mind, WWE actually had Daniel Bryan cutting great promos for awhile there...they just air them on their YouTube channel for some fucking reason. 

[Mad Dog]

I was looking at the AEW numbers and they hit that 18-49 male demo hard. They might actually see some decent gains if they run unopposed against baseball. I think if they have some ratings struggle but can keep that strong pull with the 18-49 males they will be okay.

[Zoo Enthusiast]

Awesome show again.  It’s refreshing to just see something as basic pro wrestling as Darby coming in to get some shine at the end of the show to pump up next week. I love how much they are pushing non-Elite guys like Darby and Guevara so much right out of the gate.  

The Bucks matches the past two weeks have been my favorites of theirs in a long time.  Had a friend of mine who has basically only watched WWE (starting about 18 months ago) since the Monday Night Wars text me today to tell me how incredible he thought Bucks/Private Party was.

[gordi]

I just turned 54 on Monday, and I think it's fair to call me an AEW mark already. Certainly a wrestling show that is focused on wrestling and not stupid puerile embarrassing bullshit will appeal to other lapsed fans in my demographic. Certainly a show that is trying to get their young guys over as stars rather than punishing wrestlers for getting over on their own will have appeal for a lot of fed-up wrestling fans.

 

If you'd told me early in the decade that WWE would have Bryan,  Shinsuke, Kevin Steen, El Generico, KANA, Samoa Joe, Claudio Castagnoli, Styles, Lince Dorado, Ricochet, Mystico, Pirate Princess Kairi Hojo, Davina Rose, Prince Devitt, Tyler Black, Octagon Jr, Mattias Wild, Kyle O'Reilly, Io Shirai and a ton of other excellent wrestlers on their roster... but that I'd far prefer to watch a show built around The Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, and Stardust?!?!?!? 

Good on those guys. Against all odds, they have completely won an old guy like me over and got me interested in watching weekly wrestling TV again. 

[C.S.]

The one thing I was worried about with AEW when it was first announced was that it would be just a bunch of “rasslin’” and “movez,” which by themselves don’t draw interest and I don’t give a fuck about - part of why current NXT and even WWE are such slogs in places - but everyone in AEW has an easily definable character.

If I care about the wrestlers, I care about the matches. Such a lost art, in WWE/NXT anyway, but AEW understands that small basic fundamental and it’s amazing what a big difference it makes.

[Migs]

7 hours ago, C.S. said:

The one thing I was worried about with AEW when it was first announced was that it would be just a bunch of “rasslin’” and “movez,” which by themselves don’t draw interest and I don’t give a fuck about - part of why current NXT and even WWE are such slogs in places - but everyone in AEW has an easily definable character.

If I care about the wrestlers, I care about the matches. Such a lost art, in WWE/NXT anyway, but AEW understands that small basic fundamental and it’s amazing what a big difference it makes.

The Elite have always been excellent at getting other guys over and building them up (Flip Gordon!). Had high hopes of them doing it for a whole promotion and they are pulling it off. There's a part of me that misses them focusing on themselves a bit (2018, artistically, was pretty amazing, particularly the build to Cody-Kenny and All In), but it's probably the right call as they build the promotion.

[Log]

10 hours ago, gordi said:

If you'd told me early in the decade that WWE would have Bryan,  Shinsuke, Kevin Steen, El Generico, KANA, Samoa Joe, Claudio Castagnoli, Styles, Lince Dorado, Ricochet, Mystico, Pirate Princess Kairi Hojo, Davina Rose, Prince Devitt, Tyler Black, Octagon Jr, Mattias Wild, Kyle O'Reilly, Io Shirai and a ton of other excellent wrestlers on their roster... but that I'd far prefer to watch a show built around The Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, and Stardust?!?!?!? 

Good on those guys. Against all odds, they have completely won an old guy like me over and got me interested in watching weekly wrestling TV again. 

This is a great point.  I'm terrible at making lists, but if you asked me to list my 20 or so favorite wrestlers, there would be a ton from WWE's roster and, honestly, maybe one or two from AEW's.  But, I'd much rather watch AEW at this point.  Just goes to show how much there is to wrestling other than talent.

[Mrzfn]

Really enjoyed both episodes of Dynamite so far. My only real complaint is that I don't really get the push of Britt Baker and Bea Priestley... feels like they have several non-joshi women with a lot more potential. Maybe it's just me but I feel like the crowd is particularly meh towards Baker. A dentist with a tooth based submission feels pretty cheesy as well.