Welcome to another edition of Wednesday Night War from Smark Out Moment, where we compare this week's episodes of AEW Dynamite and WWE NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver Night 1 and 2 and determine which one of the three was the better show.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT WAR:
AEW DYNAMITE vs. NXT
FACTOR 1: MATCHES
AEW = Most of the matches on this week's episode delivered in spades, and this was especially clear in the main event. The storyline between all six men was perfectly woven inbetween pulsating action, ensuring this match would be considered one of the best main events of the year so far.
TakeOver Night 1 = Night 1 of NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver was full of standout matches, including the amazingly brutal contest between WALTER and Tommaso Ciampa. WALTER once again came out of an NXT UK Championship match as the clear winner, but both men well and truly went to war. Io Shirai vs Raquel Gonzalez was the most anticipated match of the night, with neither woman disappointing. Gonzalez won to finally dethrone Shirai, but both women came away from this match with their reputation enhanced.
TakeOver Night 2 = Although most of the wrestlers succeeded in putting on an awesome show, the main event between Adam Cole and Kyle O'Reilly was unnecessarily bloated. The action was brutal in parts, but at least 15 minutes could have been shaved off in order to be more effective. At least Finn Balor vs Karrion Kross exceeded my expectations.
WINNER: TakeOver Night 1
FACTOR 2: PROMOS
AEW = Chris Jericho's rant against MJF was one of his best promos in AEW. I understand that his current character can be divisive at times, but he showed here that he can effectively make Inner Circle a powerful face force as they attempt to take down MJF and The Pinnacle.
TakeOver Night 1 = Another promo vignette for Franky was shown, but as expected, the show was understandably low on promos.
TakeOver Night 2 = MSK spoke well in their promo as the new NXT Tag Team Champions, but as expected, the show was understandably low on promos.
WINNER: AEW
FACTOR 3: STORYLINES
AEW = The highlight of the night was seeing The Young Bucks turn on Jon Moxley, which is yet another delicious layer to the feud between Moxley and Kenny Omega. Inner Circle vs The Pinnacle was also perfectly expanded upon, with Inner Circle finally making the long awaited transition to faces. Overall, this was a strong week for storyline development.
TakeOver Night 1 = Storylines were not advanced as a result of this show being a pay-per-view.
TakeOver Night 2 = Storylines were not advanced as a result of this show being a pay-per-view.
WINNER: AEW
FACTOR 4: SCHEDULING / PACING
AEW = AEW was well paced this week, with most segments coming off well in terms of overall direction and pacing. The only issue I had was the time it took Inner Circle to save Chris Jericho, as it didn't feel as smooth as it perhaps should have.
TakeOver Night 1 = The first night of TakeOver was extremely well paced, coming across as one of the tightest and most entertaining TakeOver shows in recent memory.
TakeOver Night 2 = Mainly due to the bloated main event, this show was the least palatable show of the week. The pacing was off, but this seems to be exclusive to male one on one TakeOver main events.
WINNER: TakeOver Night 1
EXTRA CREDIT BONUS ROUND!!!
AEW gains points for creating an intriguing dynamic between Sting and Lance Archer.
AEW also gains points for setting up a Blood and Guts match with a feud that would do it justice.
AEW loses points for the Mike Tyson appearance feeling pointless. It was definitely a reaction to having TakeOver on the same night.
TakeOver Night 1 gains points for crowning Raquel Gonzalez in a wonderful match. This definitely feels like a passing of the torch moment, with Gonzalez set to dominate NXT for the rest of 2021.
TakeOver Night 1 also gains points for tye brutality on show between WALTER and Tommaso Ciampa.
TakeOver Night 1 loses no points for being a strongly booked show.
TakeOver Night 2 gains points for making Karrion Kross come across as a monster, as opposed to the neutered heel we had seen in his initial run.
TakeOver Night 2 loses points for failing to make Adam Cole vs Kyle O'Reilly a shorter, more effective match.
POINT ADJUSTMENTS: AEW (+2 / -1) / TakeOver Night 1 (+2 / -0) / TakeOver Night 2 (+1 / -1)
THIS WEEK'S WINNER = TakeOver Night 1
With a score of 4 to 3 to 0, TakeOver Night 1 wins this week's Wednesday Night War. Whilst the first night of TakeOver was unmissable, the second night just could not match it in terms of entertainment and intensity. Dynamite was a strong show, but it simply could not compete with a TakeOver.
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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