We are exactly six days away from AEW Dynasty 2026, and my stomach is already in knots. Being an All Elite Wrestling fan is an exercise in extreme emotional management. You get the highest highs—those matches that make you remember why you started watching this ridiculous sport in the first place—and the lowest, most frustrating booking lows.
Tony Khan has assembled arguably the greatest in-ring roster in the history of North American professional wrestling. That is not hyperbole. You look at the locker room heading into Kansas City this coming Sunday, and it is outright absurd. But having the absolute best toys and knowing how to play with them are two entirely different things.
Dynasty is sitting right there, begging to be an all-time classic premium live event. The build has been chaotic, occasionally brilliant, and frequently baffling. But the bell is going to ring, the talking will stop, and the talent will have to deliver.
Here is the reality of the situation. We do not just need good matches. AEW always delivers good matches. We need the right outcomes. The fanbase is practically begging for a handful of specific results to course-correct some of the weird creative drift we have suffered through this spring.
A Clean, Definitive Main Event Finish
First and foremost, the main event needs a clean, undisputed finish in the middle of the ring. No asterisk. No interference from a rogue faction. No lights flickering off so a guy in a black hoodie can hit someone with a steel pipe.
If Will Ospreay and Swerve Strickland are going to tear the house down for 35 minutes, you let them finish the story they are telling. AEW built its reputation on treating its main events like legitimate athletic contests. We have slipped away from that a bit lately, relying too heavily on the sports entertainment crutches that many of us tuned into Dynamite to escape.
Swerve has been grinding his gears trying to keep his momentum going since his historic run in 2024. He carried the company on his back through some incredibly rough patches. Meanwhile, Ospreay is simply the best bell-to-bell wrestler breathing oxygen right now. You put those two in the ring, you ring the bell, and you get out of the way.
If Ospreay hits the Hidden Blade and gets the 1-2-3, the crowd will explode. If Swerve hits the House Call and retains, the building will shake. Just give us a finish that makes sense and does not insult our intelligence.
The Jamie Hayter Coronation
Moving down the card, the women's division is sitting on a powder keg, and her name is Jamie Hayter. Since her return from that grueling injury layoff, she has been the undeniable emotional core of the division. The fans did not forget about her. If anything, absence made the heart grow rabid. We all remember Full Gear 2022 when she finally beat Toni Storm. We want that feeling back.
Right now, Mercedes Mone is doing her best work as the final boss, dripping in arrogance and custom ring gear. The match between them at Dynasty is the easiest story to tell. It is the homegrown hero who fought through the trenches versus the polished, wealthy superstar who bought her way to the top of the marquee.
The dream outcome here is simple. Hayter hits the Hayterade, folds Mone in half, and takes her spot back. We do not need a thirty-minute Broadway with false finishes. We need a physical, violent sprint where Hayter proves she is the baddest woman on the roster. If AEW overthinks this and has Mone retain via some convoluted run-in, the air will completely leave the arena in Kansas City.
The Tag Team Division Needs a Reset
Let's talk about the tag team division, which used to be the crown jewel of this company. Right now, it feels like it is stuck in the mud. The Young Bucks have been doing their meta-heel executive gimmick for what feels like an absolute eternity. It was funny for a month. Now, it is actively hurting the division.
We need a babyface team to step up and definitively take the titles off Matthew and Nicholas. FTR has been circling the wagons, but we have seen that match half a dozen times. The Acclaimed feel ice cold compared to their peak. The fanbase is desperate for someone, anyone, to inject some life back into tag team wrestling.
If the Bucks drop the belts at Dynasty, it immediately opens up the field. You can start rebuilding teams like Private Party or Top Flight as legitimate contenders rather than just guys who do cool flips on Collision. The tag belts used to mean you were the best duo on the planet. We need to get back to that standard immediately.
Stop Debuting People and Start Pushing Your Roster
Here is my biggest, most glaring gripe with Tony Khan's booking philosophy heading into Sunday. Stop debuting people. Just stop it.
Tony Khan's worst habit is booking for the pop instead of booking for the payoff. He loves the lights going out. He loves the mystery music hitting. He loves the momentary shock of Excalibur screaming a name on commentary.
But what happens the next week? Usually, the guy comes out, cuts a rambling promo, and gets slotted into a meaningless trios match. The roster is already bursting at the seams. We have guys like Rush, Miro, and Malakai Black—legitimate main event talents—struggling to get consistent television time.
The dream outcome for Dynasty isn't a surprise debut from a New Japan guy or a released WWE midcarder. The dream outcome is that the people already under contract are given the time and focus to actually get over. The continuous dopamine hit of a new signing has completely worn off. It is the booking equivalent of eating candy for dinner. You get a quick sugar rush, and then you feel sick.
We need Khan to trust the incredibly talented people he already pays. Let Hangman Page go on a violent tear that actually leads somewhere. Let Takeshita win a meaningful feud instead of just having bangers and losing in the end. The answers are already inside the building. Stop looking out the window.
The Ghost of the Elite
And then we have to address the looming shadow over everything in AEW: The Elite. The Blood and Guts match feels like a lifetime ago, and the ongoing faction warfare has started to feel repetitive.
Fans are hoping Dynasty represents a clean break. Wrap up the current Elite storyline and let these guys go their separate ways for a while. Jack Perry has done a ton of great character work, but he needs to stand on his own two feet without the Jackson brothers flanking him every single week.
Kazuchika Okada needs to be a singles terror, not just the muscle for a corporate faction. Okada holding the Continental Championship has been great for his aura, but it has completely stalled out the midcard. Okada is treating the belt like an accessory, which fits his arrogant Rainmaker persona perfectly, but the fans want to see that title defended.
If somebody like Daniel Garcia or even a revitalized PAC can push Okada to the absolute limit at Dynasty, even in a losing effort, it elevates the entire concept of the championship. Better yet, let someone shock the world. Let Okada drop the belt in a massive upset, forcing him to snap and go on an unforgiving tear. The current state of Okada showing up, hitting a Rainmaker, and leaving is fun, but it is not building toward anything sustainable.
The TNT Championship Needs a Pulse
Let's not forget the TNT Championship. For a while there, Christian Cage was carrying that belt—and arguably the entire television product—on his back with his glorious, venomous patriarchal gimmick. But since that era wrapped up, the belt has felt like a hot potato.
We need the TNT title to get back to its roots. Remember when Darby Allin was defending it every week, taking absolutely psychotic bumps on free television to make the championship feel important? That is the energy we need back.
If someone like Takeshita or even a returning Ricky Starks can grab that title at Dynasty and declare an open challenge, it instantly makes Collision must-see TV again. We do not need convoluted backstage segments. We just need a killer in the ring daring people to try and take his prize.
The Verdict
Six days. That is all we have left until Kansas City. Dynasty 2026 has the potential to be the course correction AEW desperately needs heading into the summer. The ingredients are all there. The talent is hungry, the fans are ready to lose their minds, and the stage is set.
All Tony Khan has to do is get out of his own way. Give us clean finishes. Crown the right people. Let the wrestling speak for itself. If we wake up on Monday morning and we are arguing about referee distractions and blown interference spots, the doom-posting on the internet is going to reach absolute peak toxicity.
But if they nail it? If Hayter gets her moment? If Ospreay and Swerve deliver a masterpiece with a definitive winner? Then we will all remember why we ride this crazy rollercoaster in the first place. Put the egos aside, ring the damn bell, and let's find out.
