The New Era Has Arrived: What to Expect from AEW on TNT, WWE SmackDown on Fox

One of the most anticipated weeks in wrestling in years is about to get even bigger with the premieres of AEW Dynamite on Wednesday night on TNT and WWE SmackDown this Friday on Fox.

Both moves have been in the making for a while and have generated a ton of buzz in recent months. If it wasn't already an exciting time to be a wrestling fan, it undoubtedly is now.

As cliched as it sounds, a new era has officially arrived in the world of wrestling this week. Let's look at everything on tap and the surprises that could be in store for the launch of AEW Dynamite as well as SmackDown's loaded Fox premiere.

AEW Dynamite, TNT, Wednesday

For the first time in nearly two decades, professional wrestling is back on TNT.

All Elite Wrestling has quickly established itself as the perfect alternative to WWE with its last four megaevents: Double or Nothing, Fyter Fest, Fight for the Fallen, and All Out. Each show was excellent in its own way and successfully set the stage for what we'll be seeing Wednesday night on the debut of Dynamite.

Opening up the broadcast will be Cody vs. Sammy Guevara. Per Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful, Cody losing would lead to Guevara replacing him in the AEW World Championship match against Chris Jericho at Full Gear on November 9.

Cody emerging victorious is the most logical outcome, but don't sleep on a possible win for Guevara. If AEW truly wants to build up new faces outside of its core crop of talent, it's going to have to start giving fresh faces such as Guevara some important victories.

Following their respective wins at All Out, Nyla Rose and Riho will battle to determine the first-ever AEW Women's champion. You can bet the rest of the division, including Britt Baker, will be watching closely to see who they'll be chasing for the title coming out of Wednesday's epic event.

MJF will also be in action as he takes on Brandon Cutler. The two men have been at odds as of late on Being the Elite, so this will be a chance to settle their score and attempt to impress in front of a worldwide audience.

Although both of those bouts have promise, neither is anywhere as anticipated as Chris Jericho, Santana and Ortiz vs. Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks, or Adam Page vs. Pac.

When it was initially announced in late July that Omega and the Bucks would be facing Jericho and two mystery partners, speculation ran wild, with fans assuming it would be former Impact world tag team champions Santana and Ortiz.

Sure enough, the electrifying tandem debuted at All Out and attacked the Bucks and The Lucha Brothers. They were made official for the match just this past week on TNT's Countdown to AEW Dynamite special.

Page vs. Pac, on the other hand, has been on the cards since January. They were set to clash at Double or Nothing before Pac pulled out at the last minute, but following his return and subsequent victory over Omega at All Out, their upcoming encounter may be more heated more than it would have been earlier this year.

Lastly, the ultra-popular Jon Moxley is slated to make an appearance on the program. It's expected he will discuss the injury that kept him from competing against Omega at All Out and likely make some sort of a statement ahead of their outing at Full Gear next month.

It's worth nothing there are a number of rumors doing the rounds regarding notable names who could show up on the debut of Dynamite, but we'll refrain from spoiling anything in this article for the sake of surprises.

The bottom line is they have a strong show on paper, meaning SmackDown will have its work cut out for it come Friday night on Fox.

Friday Night SmackDown, Fox, Friday

While SmackDown doesn't have nearly as many matches lined up for its premiere broadcast on Fox as AEW Dynamite, the blue brand will more than make up for it in star power.

As of this writing, among those announced for the special show include The Rock (making his return after over three years), "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, Kurt Angle and Trish Stratus, to name just a few.

Additionally, the main event will see Brock Lesnar challenge Kofi Kingston for the WWE Championship in his first match on WWE TV since 2004.

The New Day man has successfully defended the prestigious prize against some elite competition over the past six months, but he's never faced a challenger the caliber of The Beast Incarnate.

If WWE truly wants to make a splash with SmackDown in its new home, booking a title change is the right route to take. Lesnar becoming an absentee champion again isn't ideal, of course, but it's as likely as someone interfering and costing him the championship to plant the seeds for his next program.

In a rematch from SummerSlam, Kevin Owens and Shane McMahon will meet one-on-one, this time in a ladder match. If KO scores a second straight win over his rival, he will not only reclaim his spot on the roster but will also ensure he's removed from power once and for all.

Although it's slightly shocking that WWE isn't waiting until Sunday's Hell in a Cell pay-per-view to blow off their long-running rivalry, it's a major attraction for the Fox premiere, nonetheless. It should be entertaining and hopefully spell the end of McMahon as an on-air character for the time being.

Finally, the Four Horsewomen will collide in a blockbuster tag team match when Sasha Banks and Bayley wage war with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair.

Two nights before Banks and Lynch collide inside Hell in a Cell, this contest will serve as a massive momentum-builder for whoever wins.

Lest we forget, the WWE draft returns on October 11 and 14, so the company could be aiming to go all-out on Friday night with an abundance of appearances before they focus on the current roster again. That means more familiar faces, such as a returning John Morrison or even John Cena, could pop up at any point during the episode.

It's a stacked SmackDown to say the least, but how it will measure up against AEW Dynamite remains to be seen. Either way, both shows are virtually guaranteed to be great and usher in this new era with a bang.

Tune into TNT on Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. ET to catch all the action of AEW Dynamite.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is an Endicott College alumnus and aspiring journalist. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.