AEW Dynamite: Bringing wrestling back to Charleston was a long-time coming

The fifth episode of AEW Dynamite aired from the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center in Charleston, West Virginia on the eve of Halloween on a night that was nearly two decades in the making for the capital city of West Virginia.

Pro wrestling has a long history in Charleston, West Virginia, but a live televised wrestling show had not taken place in Charleston since July 3, 2000, when WCW Monday Nitro took place.  But AEW Dynamite changed the fortunes of televised wrestling in Charleston with an action-packed show that local wrestling fans in Charleston and surrounding areas had been waiting for.

It was viewed as a surprising decision to bring only the fifth-ever episode of Dynamite to Charleston, but in recent interviews with local Charleston-based media, AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes said he grew up on southern wrestling and knew what it brought to the table and how much the fans would appreciate a show of this magnitude.   There was a conscious effort to give Charleston a chance early on in Dynamite’s existence.

The loud, boisterous, and energetic crowd definitely didn’t disappoint from start to finish in the midst of another stellar episode of Dynamite.  The show kicked off with in-ring action between “Hangman” Adam Page and Sammy Guevara and the crowd was hot from the start.  The women’s match that saw Hikaru Shida defeat Shanna was impressive in its own right, but nobody saw what would come next when The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express would be attacked.

The legendary tag team was there to help crown the first-ever AEW World Tag Team Champions later in the night, but Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson would be attacked from behind by Santana and Ortiz while being interviewed on the top of the ramp.  It would be capped off with Santana and Ortiz power bombing Morton through part of the stage before The Young Bucks chased them off and checked on the well-being of The Rock ‘n’ Roll Express.

Best Friends and Orange Cassidy defeating Alex Reynolds, John Silver, and QT Marshall was an enjoyable and fun match that the crowd ate up, especially when Cassidy got involved to help pave the way for a win for his team.  The contract signing between AEW World Champion Chris Jericho and Cody for their upcoming title match at Full Gear was a crowd-pleaser as well with both stars getting big reactions before Jericho’s Inner Circle struck.

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Jake Hager was shown in the parking lot area attacking Cody’s brother Dustin Rhodes while Guevera watched.  It wrapped up with Dustin getting his arm slammed in the limousine door before Cody eventually got out there flanked by MJF to chase them off.  An action-packed six-man tag team match took place next when Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks took on The Hybrid 2 and Kip Sabian.  This was a great battle that saw The Elite get the win.

Jon Moxley interrupted “The Librarian” Peter Avalon to get some things off of his chest in the promo of the night.  Moxley was not pleased to hear the announcement that his upcoming match with Omega at Full Gear will now be an unsanctioned match.  He said Omega’s blood will be on AEW’s hands with Moxley as defiant and unhinged as ever, and the crowd ate it up.  It was then main event time where the AEW World Tag Team Championship would find its first home.

SCU took on The Lucha Bros in a marquee tag team match that perfectly capped off the tag team title tournament.  It was back and forth for the entirety of the match with so many standout moments before Scorpio Sky and Frankie Kazarian managed to escape with the win via a small package to become the first-ever AEW World Tag Team Champions.  The crowd was a bit iffy with this finish, but it was effective because it didn’t make The Lucha Bros look weak by losing.

This was a huge night for Charleston, West Virginia and the state of West Virginia in general.  As a West Virginian all my life, this was a long-awaited night that I looked forward to for a long time.  I had never personally seen a televised wrestling show in my backyard, so to speak.  It was almost surreal to see this all play out in front of my very eyes.  The result should be viewed positively and hopefully, this opens the door for more future shows of this magnitude in Charleston.

AEW should be commended for bringing Dynamite to certain towns and arenas that usually don’t get the chance to see wrestling outside of simple house shows.  It’s a trend that excites fans and a trend that should continue moving forward.  The WWE seems like it has gone to the same places for decades and that gets old after a while.  AEW making an effort to explore all options is a great way to separate itself from the WWE.

More than 19 years is a long time, but seeing televised wrestling in Charleston, West Virginia again will be talked about for years to come and hopefully, it results in more shows like it in the future.