Debut Of New Look Fails To Increase Viewership For AEW Dynamite

The first "AEW Dynamite" of 2023 is in the books. With AEW teasing a new look coming to both "Dynamite" and "Rampage" and a fun match card, the promotion was looking to start off the year hot. So, after last week's "New Year's Smash" episode suffered a dip in ratings, was Wednesday night's episode able to right the ship?

Unfortunately, "Dynamite" numbers continued their downward trend, albeit with a slight decrease. Wrestlenomics reported that Wednesday night's episode reeled in an average total viewership of 864,000, which is down 14 percent compared to one year ago.

In the key 18-49 demographic, the show received a 0.26 rating, a seven percent decrease from last week. In addition, the program ranked fourth in cable originals, behind the coverage of two NBA basketball games and "SportsCenter" on ESPN.

AEW brought a new look to "Dynamite." The show redesigned its visual elements, match cards, and even its intro video. AEW also gained a new set design, departing from its two-tunnel stage to a primarily LED-screen presentation.

The January 4 "Dynamite" saw Ricky Starks facing Chris Jericho to kick off the show, with the latter gaining the victory. "Hangman" Adam Page and Jon Moxley engaged in a war of words to set up a match between the two at next week's "Dynamite" in Los Angeles.

Two big championship matches headlined the episode. The Acclaimed successfully defended their AEW World Tag Team Titles against Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal following a controversial ending. To cap off the show, Darby Allin won against Samoa Joe in his hometown of Seattle to become a two-time TNT Championship.