There’s been a lot to love about Toni Storm’s rivalry with Deonna Purrazzo, as it has brought a genuinely detailed story that the women’s division has desperately needed. However, tonight’s show was a complete bust that genuinely took the angle backward rather than progressing it towards AEW Revolution.

Every week fans (and us) typically complain about the fact there’s only one women’s match on “AEW Dynamite.” This week, Tony Khan booked two, which seems like progress — on paper. The reality is that neither match delivered, and when each match features the two women who are set to compete for the AEW Women’s World Championship at the upcoming PPV, that is a problem.

Toni Storm’s match was essentially a squash as she took on a local talent, but her opponent was unfortunately not ready to be put in that spot which led to a clunky encounter that was fortunately kept brief. The bigger problems arose when Purrazzo faced Madison Rayne, who is a veteran of the wrestling business. Perhaps it’s due to Rayne’s lengthy time out of the ring, but Rayne and Purrazzo simply didn’t work well together.

The match felt awkward, the fans didn’t care, and none of it helped to make Purrazzo look good. It wasn’t helped by a genuinely scary spot towards the finish that led to the referee and doctor checking up on Rayne after she was dropped on her head — something AEW would strangely replay and call the “move of the night” just after.

While Storm and Purrazzo tried to rescue the situation at the end by having a brief brawl, the situation was beyond salvaging at that point. Everyone knows Storm and Purrazzo are capable of great work inside the ring, but these matches don’t indicate that to any new fan that might be tuning in which is an issue, and hopefully they can get things back on track next week and remind people why this is a storyline to be invested in that has more layers than just post-match run-ins.

Written by Matthew Wilkinson