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From Brodie Lee (formerly known as Luke Harper) being revealed as The Exalted One to Matt Hardy's dramatic appearance at the end of the episode, this week's edition of AEW Dynamite featured some contrasting moments.
AEW has put on many impressive episodes in the past, but this week's edition of Dynamite had to be one of the most unique shows the company has aired so far.
Aside from the two big appearances during the episode, AEW made the right creative decision by adding a heel and a babyface section to fill an empty arena amidst the Coronavirus outbreak. The constant chatter (mostly MJF) made every bout quite engaging from start-to-finish.
Here are the 5 biggest news stories from this week's episode of AEW Dynamite (March 18, 2020).
#5: The Elite gave an update on their important reel and real-life situations before kicking off the episode
Before kicking off the episode, Cody gave a heartfelt speech in front of a darkened, empty arena.
He was soon joined by fellow Elite members, Matt Jackson, and Kenny Omega.
Without explicitly mentioning "Coronavirus" during the cold open, viewers were aware of how the conversation referenced to the effects of our current pandemic.
Unlike WWE, we don't even know if there will be an AEW show next week. Kenny Omega mentioned this before the presentation swiftly transitioned towards The Elite's current storyline involving "Hangman" Adam Page.
The members needed to know if their distant companion would stand with them during the main event. Adam Page simply nodded and went backstage.
Without making a huge deal about it, The Elite kicked off the episode with the benefit of pyro in a relatively larger space than the Performance Centre.
This set in motion a very unusual and interesting episode of AEW Dynamite on TNT.
#4: Lance Archer and Jake "The Snake" Roberts were featured in a high-quality video package at the Murderhawk Mansion
Firstly, whoever was in charge of producing Lance Archer's vignette during this week's episode of Dynamite deserves a raise.
Before the video package aired, Jake Roberts talked about how Cody needs to stand up and stop ignoring Archer's threat from this point onwards.
The vignette itself had an apocalyptic vibe to it, where Archer destroyed a couple of wrestlers who were ready to "try or die" against The Murderhawk Monster.
Jake Roberts sat in the distance like a scheming villain who gave the viewers a sense of impending doom. After Archer took out everyone in the ring, a final challenger had the privilege of being choke-slammed on to the hood of a car.
All in all, this video package accomplished two major objectives.
Firstly, it provided a unique spotlight towards Lance Archer for audiences that are unfamiliar with the man, and secondly, the vignette was a great way to utilize TV time in an episode where wrestlers can't feed off the crowd's energy at all.
AEW could really use more highly-produced video packages like these to tell unique stories in their episodes.
#3: Brodie Lee is The Exalted One
After months of buildup, The Exalted One's identity was revealed on this week's episode of AEW Dynamite.
The Exalted One is supposed to be the secret leader of The Dark Order, a faction that has received mixed criticism from fans so far. Brodie Lee (formerly known as Luke Harper) and Matt Hardy were the two most rumored names for this spot.
In the end, Christopher Daniels of SCU was proven wrong about The Exalted One's existence when Brodie Lee turned out to be the cult leader.
Interestingly, Brodie Lee has been associated with wrestling cults throughout his career, with The Wyatt Family being a huge phase of his WWE run in the past.
Lee also took a shot at Vince McMahon, but ultimately, the success of his AEW career will depend on the booking of The Dark Order in general. The heel faction has often crossed the line of pure silliness despite being presented as a menacing group. Hopefully, Brodie Lee's future as The Exalted One will allow The Dark Order to re-establish their image as a faction on par with The Elite and The Inner Circle.
#2: The Inner Circle defeated The Elite to gain an advantage in the upcoming Blood and Guts match
The main event of last night's episode of Dynamite saw The Inner Circle (Santana, Ortiz, Jake Hager) taking on The Elite (Cody, Hangman Page, Matt Jackson) in a six-man tag team bout that would give either winner an advantage during AEW's upcoming Blood and Guts match.
Chris Jericho entertained viewers on commentary during the main event, and a hilarious moment occurred when Sammy Guevara and MJF sang Jericho's theme without the fans in attendance this week.
The Inner Circle's unity was on full display as the heel team dominated Cody throughout a huge chunk of the 30-minute slot. Adam Page and Matt Jackson also tried to co-exist in this environment, as Jericho made jokes about their dangerous attack on Nick Jackson last week.
In a back-and-forth contest, The Inner Circle picked up the victory when Santana rolled up Matt Jackson for a quick pinfall.
Not only this gave The Inner Circle an advantage in the future, but an outnumbered Elite pulled off a newsworthy twist during the last few moments of this episode...
#1: Matt Hardy's appearance as a member of The Elite ended the show on a cliffhanger
After The Inner Circle established their dominance over The Elite on this week's episode, Chris Jericho and the rest of his gang celebrated in front of their babyface rivals in typical heel fashion.
Jericho also "banned" AEW fans from attending future shows so that no one else fuels The Elite's momentum ever again.
The leader of The Inner Circle also boasted about the fact that his group clearly outnumbered The Elite at this stage. What followed next was a dramatic introduction towards Matt Hardy's first AEW appearance. Vanguard One (Hardy's drone) signaled the arrival of The Broken One, who appeared near the stands to end the episode on a cliffhanger.
Matt Hardy's decision to join AEW was the most promising option out of every alternative. Not only does Matt get to re-establish his wildly popular Broken persona once again, but he also gets to do the same without any unnecessary creative interference this time around.
Also, Matt's inclusion into the Blood and Guts match is an intriguing decision since most fans expected him to debut separately or as The Exalted One in the first place. This cliffhanger ended an episode that will surely go down as one of the most memorable editions of AEW Dynamite in history.
