WEDNESDAY NIGHT WAR:
AEW DYNAMITE vs. NXT
FACTOR 1: MATCHES
AEW = Dynamite featured a number of strong matches this week, with no single match in particular disappointing. Miro won his first singles match in AEW against Trent, and whilst it went a bit too long for my liking, he looked more impressive than he has at any point in his fledgling AEW career.
The Young Bucks vs Private Party was a stunning main event, with a number of near falls adding to the undoubted quality of the bout. The action was strong, but the selling and storyline of the match was near perfect. Overall, AEW succeeded this week with the quality of their matches.
NXT = Dakota Kai vs Ember Moon was always going to be a strong match, but thankfully it was even better than I had anticipated. Moon put on her strongest performance since she returned to NXT, whilst Kai continues to play her character to perfection, capitalising on the inevitable interference from Raquel Gonzalez. The action was tight and exciting, with both women proving why they are considered to be in the upper echelon of NXT's women's division.
KUSHIDA once more put forward his case for title consideration as he defeated Cameron Grimes in convincing fashion. KUSHIDA has finally found his feet in NXT, which can only benefit the brand as a whole, considering how strong his Japanese offense is. Overall, NXT put on a night of extremely entertaining wrestling, featuring an improvement over recent standard episodes of NXT.
WINNER: NXT
FACTOR 2: PROMOS
AEW = Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley shared an extremely passionate promo, highlighting how close they used to be. Both men explained how they will make the other say 'I Quit' at Full Gear, and honestly, this promo gave me goosebumps. It was that good.
NXT = Simply put, Pat McAfee is quickly becoming the best promo in NXT. Yet again he delivered a strong promo, highlighting the death of The Undisputed Era. It was yet another step towards his new stable becoming the rulers of NXT.
WINNER: AEW
FACTOR 3: STORYLINES
AEW = MJF's quest to join Inner Circle took an interesting turn this week as both he and Wardlow defeated Inner Circle, with MJF attacking Chris Jericho after the match. Rather than kick off and hunt MJF down, Jericho instead grinned as MJF was displaying the killer instinct that he claimed was missing from MJF's overall package.
Tensions were further teased between Kenny Omega and Hangman Adam Page, with Page seemingly trying to restore his friendship with The Elite. The slow burning nature of this storyline is fascinating to watch.
NXT = Candice LeRae raised the stakes in her feud with Shotzi Blackheart as she destroyed her tank. It is great this feud is continuing as it is seriously helping to elevate Blackheart within NXT.
WINNER: AEW
FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING
AEW = Dynamite was a solid, if not spectacular, go home show for this weekend's Full Gear pay-per-view. The show was well paced, with almost every aspect tailored to preparing for Full Gear.
NXT = NXT was an extremely well paced show, which can be attributed to the higher focus on strong wrestling matches. The pacing was great, whilst the show felt logically booked.
WINNER: NXT
EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!
AEW gains points for Chris Jericho's hilarious commentary. He is always a delight when he is on commentary.
AEW also gains points for keeping Darby Allin's character looking suitably moody. Even if he wins the AEW TNT Championship, it is clear he will not change his dark ways.
AEW loses points for a number of audio issues. AEW really needs to up their production game in comparison to NXT.
AEW also loses points for the rather insipid manner in which Nyla Rose and Hikaru Shida fought. It was not graceful, with Shida looking noticeably weaker as a result.
NXT gains points for not making Pat McAfee and his stable look like a joke.
NXT also gains points for focusing more on wrestling this week than promos and storylines, which made the show feel fresh.
NXT loses points for Xia Li's storyline, which continues to disappoint.
POINT ADJUSTMENTS: AEW (+2 / -2) / NXT (+2 / -1)
THIS WEEK'S WINNER = NXT
With a score of 3 to 2, NXT wins this week's Wednesday Night War. NXT was a tighter show overall, whilst Dynamite was not as strong as a go home show should be. Although I am looking forward to Full Gear, I feel they could have done more with building up to the pay-per-view.
That's my pick for the better show of the week, but how do YOU stand?
Which was better, Dynamite or NXT?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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