AEW Double or Nothing 2020: 5 biggest takeaways – Stadium Stampede first of many cinematic matches for company

AEW Double or Nothing 2020 delivered some ridiculous fun, but what does its events mean for future programming? Here are some takeaways.

In a week where the wrestling world was rocked by the passings of Shad Gaspard and Hana Kimura (along with the CZW controversy and the Dark Side of the Ring finale reminding us of the Owen Hart tragedy), AEW Double or Nothing 2020 arrived at the perfect time. 

A lot of us needed a break from the rough, real world and for a few hours, AEW’s latest PPV delivered with laughs, gripping drama, and some wholesome fun.

We’re already anxious to see what All Elite Wrestling delivers next on Dynamite (yet alone their next PPV events, Fyter Fest and All Out), but judging from what took place last night, what could come to fruition next on AEW programming. Here are my biggest takeaways from AEW Double or Nothing 2020.

Brodie Lee is going to be even more dangerous now

Mr. Brodie Lee walked into AEW with a World Championship that did not belong to him and was determined to keep that belt to become an official champion at Jon Moxley’s expense. Of course, as we know now, that’s not how last night’s title match went down.

With the belt back in the rightful hands of the champion, we know that Jon Moxley’s next target is number one contender Brian Cage, but Mr. Lee’s trajectory seems a little uncertain.

We don’t know where Lee is going or who he could feud with next, but we should expect him to be far more dangerous than we’ve ever seen him before. As we’ve seen in certain vignettes with the Dark Order, you wouldn’t like The Exalted One when he’s angry.

Now that he’s not only failed to become AEW Champion and lost his undefeated streak, he’s going to be angrier than ever, which won’t be good news for his opponents or even his legion of minions. Lee’s latest evolution should be interesting to see unfold in the coming weeks.

Also, here’s an extra bonus honorable mention takeaway: Cage is Moxley is going to be awesome.

MJF and Jungle Boy are the future of AEW

Everyone walked into AEW Double or Nothing 2020 giddy to see the card’s title matches and especially the opening ladder match, but a low stakes match on the card in MJF vs. Jungle Boy practically emerged as a show stealer. Despite their young ages of 24 and 22 (respectively), they gave us something of an old school throwback of a bout with a modern twist.

More than just an entertaining romp, the two young men showed us why we could be looking at the future of AEW’s main event picture. MJF is a little more ready than Jungle Boy to enter that picture thanks to his recent booking as a future top heel, but the way that Jungle Boy can get a crowd on his side and a sympathetic babyface marks him a future champion in his own right.

As good as they are now, they will only improve with age. Give it just a couple of years down the line and both men will become staples of the World Title picture for years to come. Who knows? Maybe the next time that they square off in the ring, it will be for the AEW World Championship, perhaps as early as next year’s Double or Nothing show.

We’ll have to see what the future holds, but the future looks bright for both men.

AEW are finally giving their women’s division proper attention

Early on, AEW struggled to really showcase the best that its women’s division has to offer. Whether it’s just barely featuring the division (either in short matches, or not having any women’s matches on their cards) or showcasing them in really bad storylines (The Nightmare Collective still leaves a bad taste in our mouths).

However, in the past couple of months, they have been putting more effort into giving the women’s divsion their just due. They not only have been getting a larger abundance of segments and matches every week, but they’ve been shown in longer matches; and some of the best ones to boot.

Last night, AEW highlighted the division in full force in not one, but two matches. After not being rarely shown in a wrestling capacity thanks to her manager duties, Penelope Ford replaced an injured Britt Baker to give a strong performance against Kris Statlander in a very good match.

Then, Hikaru Shida and Nyla Rose used their tremendous chemistry to deliver one of the best matches of the night, on top of Shida’s title win being one of the show’s most memorable moments. Even the women who weren’t booked in compeition got some attention. Namely, Big Swole who was an MVP in her own right for her cheers and jeers behind the barricade.

AEW are finally getting the jist for how to book their women’s division and it’s working. Let’s see if they can keep it up.

The TNT Championship is in the right hands

Maybe I’m alone in this take. The very idea of Cody Rhodes booking himself to never challenge for the World Championship ever again, only for him to craft an entire tournament for him to become the first winner of a midcard championship seems to have split audiences around the globe.

Some people think the right decision was made last night while others think that it was a waste of an inaugural championship win. I fall in the former category.

First off, I feel like inaugural championship wins should (more often than not) be reserved for babyface wins. There’s nothing that makes an already special moment even more special than a crowd leaping up and down to see their favorite wrestler holding their belt up high as its first holder.

Even without the crowd, a moment like this wouldn’t have had the same luster as if Mike Tyson was raising Lance Archer’s hand in victory. As his incredible performance last night proved, Archer has what it takes to be a stable for any division.

He’ll have his time in the sun one day, but last night belonged to Cody, who with his experience, popularity and likability is not only going to make that belt feel special, but a lot of his opponents are going to feel special by sharing the ring with an Elite competitor like Cody.

Cinematic matches are here to stay

With crowdless shows becoming a regular thing for both WWE and AEW since the start of the novel coronavirus pandemic, both promotions have taken the opportunity to get in their filmmaking bags.

WWE, of course, have reaped critical acclaim and rewards with praise to their Boneyard, Firefly Fun House, and Money in the Bank matches. All eyes have been on AEW, waiting to see how they get creative with the new medium. Stadium Stampede was their first official foray into the genre.

Inner Circle vs. The Elite proved every bit as ridiculous as fans hoped it would be and then some. It gave us everything from Hangman Page riding high on a horse, to Matt Hardy being drowned only to emerge out of the water reincarnated into his past characters, to Chris Jericho knocking out the Jacksonville Jaguars mascot, to Sammy Guevara  – poor Sammy – getting launched through the air with a death defying One Winged Angel.

AEW got real creative last night and judging from all of the positive reactions across social media, it paid off. Feels safe to say that we will be seeing many more cinematic matches from AEW in the future as a result.