Last week’s episode of “Dynamite” was fast-paced and action packed.
Would AEW be able to carry that momentum into this week’s installment?
Let’s dive in:
MISS: Cold Open
I’ve gone on the record, emphasizing how fond I am of “Dynamite” utilizing cold opens. The background music was so loud in this segment that I couldn’t hear anything that Jon Moxley was saying. Now, to play devil’s advocate, I watch the show on YouTube TV using a surround-sound system. Maybe it has something to do with my speaker’s settings. Be that as it may, I still don’t know what Moxley said, so this was a “miss.”
HIT: “Hangman” Adam Page and “Switchblade” Jay White
Tony Schiavone introduced “Hangman” Adam Page, who wanted to explain why he intervened in last week’s main event; costing “Switchblade” Jay White his match against Christian Cage. Page was interrupted by Colten Gunn, followed by Juice Robinson and White. The Bang Bang Gang chased Page out of the ring and White verbally abused him, reminding the fans that they’ve shared the ring together five times, and Page’s only win was due to Christian Cage’s interference.
I’m glad this feud didn’t end at “WrestleDream.” I love both wrestlers and I’m thoroughly enjoying White’s run as a face.
HIT: Shelton Benjamin vs. Sammy Guevara
What an opening contest!
When you have two performers of Shelton Benjamin’s and Sammy Guevara’s caliber, you know the end result is going to be good. Guevara certainly gave Benjamin a more competitive contest than Lio Rush did last week, but Benjamin ultimately dispatched — further cementing him as one of the most dangerous wrestlers in AEW.
Unfortunately, I foresee Benjamin’s run as a menacing prizefighter ending next week when he loses to Swerve Strickland, but time will tell. This was an enjoyable match.
Rating: ***¼
HIT: Kyle Fletcher Explains His Actions
I enjoyed the yarn that Don Callis and Kyle Fletcher spun, drawing parallels between his relationship with Will Ospreay and the latter betraying his former CHAOS stablemate and leader, Kazuchika Okada, in New Japan Pro Wrestling.
While I was watching this segment with my friend, we frequently made mention of how bad Fletcher’s haircut looked. So, we thought it was hilarious when Callis handed him the electric razor to buzz his hair off. For that reason alone, this segment was fantastic.
MISS: Chris Jericho vs. Mark Briscoe
The first minute of this match was glorious, but the rest was a massive disappointment for me. I love Mark Briscoe, so it genuinely hurt to see him lose the ROH world championship; especially given the comments that Chris Jericho has made in recent week’s about Briscoe’s late brother.
Will Chris Jericho and Mark Briscoe’s feud end in a trilogy or is Mark Briscoe going to join his Conglomeration stablemates in the war with the Blackpool Combat Club? Only time will tell. What I do know is that this was an unfortunate turn of events.
Rating: **
HIT: Adam Cole, The Undisputed Kingdom, and MJF
Do you know it’s all about the boom? Apparently The Undisputed Kingdom doesn’t.
Adam Cole is back, and he still wants to give Maxwell Jacob Friedman an undisputed ass-whoopin’. However, Roderick Strong, Mike Bennett and Matt Taven interrupted Cole. Strong resents MJF for denigrating his friend and wants a crack at him first.
Queue MJF on the titantron, receiving a back massage from a woman in a cocktail dress. MJF offered them both an enticing proposition: the first wrestler to win three consecutive matches gets to face MJF at “Full Gear.” Both men happily accepted MJF’s challenge.
This was a fun segment. I fully expect Adam Cole and Roderick Strong to be each other’s third opponent, before “Full Gear.” Later on in the evening, it was revealed that Cole’s first opponent will be Buddy Matthews. Hopefully MJF’s stipulation results in more fun matches like that for both men.
HIT: Queen Aminata vs. Kamille
This was an interesting match, to say the least.
Last week, Queen Aminata gave us one of Mercedes Moné’s better matches in AEW; in what proved to be a fairly competitive affair. This week, Kamille worked with Aminata, building anticipation towards her match next week on the “Fright Night” installment of “Dynamite” against Kris Statlander.
On one hand, Kamille is accustomed to dominating her opponents, given her physical stature and air of inviolability. On the other hand, she can’t beat Aminata with more ease than Moné did. The result was a little bizarre at times, but by and large a fun match. As always, Aminata was impressive, but this match lacked a certain fluidity that her match with Moné.
After the match, Statlander marched down the aisle and stood face-to-face with Kamille before all hell broke loose. Statlander was ultimately overwhelmed by both women, being laid out by a DDT from Kamille. I can’t wait for these two to share the ring next week.
Rating: **¾
MISS: Christian Cage, Hook and Kip Sabian
In theory, I like all three men involved in this segment. For some reason, the sum total just doesn’t intrigue me. I don’t care about Kip Sabian’s fascination with Christian Cage and the Patriarchy. I’m certainly not interested in the prospect of Hook facing Cage at “Full Gear.”
The only saving grace here might be that Samoa Joe returns with Katsuyori Shibata and reunites with Hook. This could be a fun avenue to reintroduce that trios tag team, for a feud down the road with the Blackpool Combat Club. Otherwise, consider this an obligatory miss.
HIT: The Main Event
I love watching The Young Bucks and Private Party share the ring and this ending was phenomenal. While Jack Perry and Daniel Garcia were the other featured wrestlers in this match, they essentially neutralized each other — giving both tag teams the floor. The finish was electric, with Private Party stunning the Bucks and pinning them for a third time. Isiah Kassidy implored Matt and Nick Jackson to reconsider giving them another title shot. Kassidy was so desperate, that he promised that if they lose again, Private Party will dissolve; much to Marq Quen’s chagrin. The Bucks happily agreed, setting the stage for another match for the AEW world tag team championships next week.
Afterwards, the BCC performed their regularly scheduled mangling of the AEW lockeroom — attacking Garcia, Kassidy, and Quen. Afterwards, Moxley dragged Chuck Taylor, who is apparently now a backstage producer, to the center of the ring. Moxley placed a chair around Taylor’s neck, which Claudio Castagnoli stomped on. Orange Cassidy rushed to Taylor’s rescue, but was too-little-too-late. Taylor’s neck was broken and the BCC escaped yet again. This week’s episode closed on Orange Cassidy, whose frustration with the BCC has reached a fever pitch.
Orange Cassidy will obviously be Moxley’s first challenger for the AEW world championship at “Full Gear,” which I’m genuinely excited for. We seldom see Cassidy lose his composure, resulting in one of the most profound endings to “Dynamite” we’ve had in recent memory. I can’t wait to see Cassidy respond to Moxley next week on “Dynamite.”
Rating: **½
Final Verdict
This was an average outing for “Dynamite,” continuing the build towards “Full Gear” and next week’s special “Fright Night” episode. It wasn’t great, but it certainly wasn’t bad either. I just fear that we’re entering groundhog’s day scenario with the BCC attacking members of the pro-AEW faction.
The rest of the week’s programming
Friday Night “Rampage”
- Ricochet vs. Nick Wayne
- Undisputed Kingdom vs. Gates of Agony vs. Shane Taylor Promotions
- Anna Jay vs. Leila Grey
- Beef vs. The Beast Mortos
Share
