AEW Dynamite – 8/12/2026: 3 Things We Hated & 3 We Loved

When I read the report that Swerve Strickland could possibly make his return tonight, I was really looking forward to it, but I was slightly apprehensive. He’s been my favorite in AEW for a while, but he hasn’t exactly had the best 2026. I wasn’t sure what direction creative was going to take him in for AEW All In, but after his appearance tonight amongst the trios division, I am absolutely intrigued.

I was not on board with Brodido and “Hangman” Adam Page taking the AEW World Trios Championships off The Demand’s Ricochet, Toa Liona, and Bishop Kaun last week, just seven days after the heels won the gold. Now, I think I see the vision, though my vision very well may be a lot of my own fantasy booking. During their victory celebration, Page had just asked the crowd, in meme form, which I loved, if they minded if a “white boy speak a little Español,” when Strickland’s music hit.

While it made sense initially, his promo really helped bring everything together. He said that Brody King, Bandido, and Page seem “trauma bonded,” since they’re all guys he’s had problems with in recent years. He went a step further to say that everything always seems to come back to “Hangman” for him, which I appreciated.

They were then interrupted by The Demand, and I usually don’t love a series of interrupting promos, but this worked well. Of course, Ricochet is furious that they lost the gold, and they want their rematch. He said Liona’s shoulders weren’t down for the entire three-count, which I don’t necessarily believe, but it works for a chicken s*** heel like Ricochet. He then directed his attention and Strickland and said that, in addition to needing to be in a trio to get involved, Strickland wasn’t safe out there, as there were nine guys (as The Demand were accompanied by the Lethal Twist) who hate him, staring him down.

Strickland got to stepping, like Ricochet told him to, and got in a quip about King being the one who barks, but Ricochet’s the b****, which pretty much ended the segment. Overall, I really loved this return because, as I mentioned with fantasy booking, it adds a lot of intrigue. If this is going to be a multi-team trios match at All In, Strickland needs two partners, and there are two huge free agents out there: Kofi and Austin Creed, who currently aren’t rumored to be involved in the AEW World Tag Team Championship picture like some fans thought they may be. Strickland’s direction and the rumor mill are going to be super interesting in the coming weeks, and I’m excited for all of it.

Written by Daisy Ruth