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From Lance Archer's explosive debut to Vanguard 1 invading the Jericho Compound in an entertaining segment, this week's edition of AEW Dynamite featured some contrasting moments.
Last night's show felt like a filler edition of Dynamite. But there were some entertaining moments throughout the episode, especially Chris Jericho's pre-taped segment that was shot out of the arena.
Hopefully, the stakes will be higher when AEW's TNT Championship Tournament kicks off next week.
What were your thoughts on this episode? How did NXT fare against AEW in terms of quality this week? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Here are the 5 biggest news stories from this week's episode of AEW Dynamite (April 1, 2020).
#5: The TNT Championship Tournament could lead to an eventual showdown between Cody and Lance Archer
Earlier, AEW announced the first two matches of their upcoming tournament: Cody vs. Shawn Spears, and Darby Allin vs. Sammy Guevara.
Last night, matches like Kip Sabian vs. Dustin Rhodes and Lance Archer vs. Colt Cabana were announced for the TNT Championship Tournament as well.
Firstly, this is the perfect time to host a tournament that will establish a mid-card champion. Not everyone can be AEW World Champion, so introducing the TNT title is a good way to highlight the company's stacked roster.
Secondly, the TNT Championship programming will be a good way to utilize TV Time when the top champion, Jon Moxley, isn't going to appear on a weekly basis.
This brings us to Cody, who cannot challenge the AEW World Champion if you recall. However, he is the favorite to win this tournament, and Cody could end up facing his brother (Dustin) in the finals once again.
But we all know that Lance Archer and Cody have to collide at some point or another. Jake Roberts has specifically targeted Cody Rhodes since his client's arrival on AEW, and a showdown between these two Superstars may be inevitable at this point.
#4: Lance Archer obliterated Marko Stunt in an impressive debut match
The Murder Hawk Monster, Lance Archer, finally got his debut match after Jake Roberts pressured Cody to make the right decision on last week's episode.
Archer didn't get to wrestle Cody, but as mentioned in the previous slide, both of them may face each other in the finals of the upcoming TNT Championship Tournament.
Instead, Archer made an explosive debut against Marko Stunt of the Jurassic Express. Both Jake Roberts and Stunt's buddies were absent from either side during last night's episode.
Archer threw around his opponent for the most part, as expected. Towards the end, The Murder Hawk Monster delivered a chokeslam to Stunt and pulled him up to perform his finisher for the cover.
After the match, Archer threw Stunt right into a crowd of other wrestlers.
This was the best way to highlight someone like Lance Archer in his debut match. It created a good impression for the casual viewers, who finally know what this man is capable of as he faces Colt Cabana in the TNT Championship Tournament in two weeks.
#3: Brodie Lee established himself as a fascist cult-leader and a comedic authority figure at the same time
Brodie Lee's new gimmick has come across as a Vince McMahon-parody for the most part.
People expected The Exalted One to exhibit a cult leader's qualities, and to some extent, Brodie Lee's in-ring persona is more grounded towards that very belief.
However, when it comes to backstage skits, Lee suddenly becomes an over-the-top authority figure, whose characteristics seem to be parodying Vince McMahon rather than sticking to the cult leader gimmick.
Dual personalities have become a hot gimmick in Professional Wrestling over the past few years, but Brodie Lee hasn't found the right balance between those two extremes yet.
For example, it probably confuses several viewers when Lee scolds one of his minions for yawning in his presence. The Dark Order has to find the right balance between silliness and seriousness.
Later, Lee would arrive in his Exalted One attire to powerbomb one of his minions who failed to overcome the threat of Dustin Rhodes and QT Marshall. It will be interesting to see how the audience will respond to Lee's gimmick when things go back to normal.
#2: Darby Allin snapped against Cody at the end of the episode
The main event of the night saw Cody and Darby Allin teaming up against Sammy Guevara and Shawn Spears.
There was a lot going on during this bout. At one point, Sammy and Spears started betting against one another when it came to a stalling suplex contest. This was a good callback to AEW's first empty arena show, where the heel side of the audience bet against each other in an entertaining way.
Sammy tried to disrespect Brandi in front of Cody and paid the price this week as well.
The big spot of the night occurred when Darby Allin climbed up the building pole and delivered a coffin drop to his opponents.
The heel team picked up the victory, and Cody tried to calm his partner down. However, Allin lashed out against Cody to end the episode. Allin has always been a solo rebel, but he also stuck with the babyfaces during tag team bouts.
A heel turn may seem uncharacteristic of him at this point, but the ending of last night's episode certainly builds up tension between Cody and Allin for a potential encounter during the TNT Championship Tournament.
#1: Vanguard 1 invaded Chris Jericho's compound in the most entertaining segment of the night
Chris Jericho has accessed the sillier aspects of his gimmick ever since Matt Hardy arrived in AEW.
Jericho was hanging out in his Jacuzzi and called The Elite a bunch of fools on April Fool's Day. But his insults towards each and every member of The Elite (and Matt Hardy) were interrupted by Vanguard One's arrival.
Jericho quickly apologized for his altercation with Hardy's security drone on last week's episode.
Apparently, he wants Vanguard 1 to be a part of The Inner Circle. But to Jericho's dismay, Vanguard 1 "stole" The Inner Circle T-Shirt and escaped before Le Champion's cute hounds could do anything to apprehend a flying drone.
Jericho and Hardy have made the most out of AEW's empty arena shows. The setback forced them to explore unique ways of entertaining the audience as well as introducing them to Matt Hardy's bizarre universe at the same time.
The goofiness of these segments may not appeal to fans who strictly watch Pro-Wrestling for the matches, but so far, both Matt Hardy and Chris Jericho have been firing on all creative cylinders to give a fresh spin on the product.
