This was a three-hour edition, with the third hour doubling as this week’s episode of Saturday Night “Collision.”
Since “All Out,” AEW has begun broadcasting its “Zero Hour” pre-shows on Turner Broadcasting, billed as the “Tailgate Brawl.” Thus, we’ve been treated to these three-hour specials.
Last month’s three-hour rendition was abysmal. Unfortunately, this was no different.
everything I’m seeing from dynamite pic.twitter.com/fVcFzqeba7
— brainbuster (@brxinbusterr) November 20, 2025
There will be 13 matches this Saturday, between the aforementioned “Tailgate Brawl” and “Full Gear.” In preparation for that inane slate, this week’s episode of “Dynamite” had nine matches of its own. That’s patently absurd.
I love the artifice of professional wrestling. So much so that I believe a wrestler’s merit is solely determined by their performance in the ring. The importance of video packages, promos, vignettes, and backstage interviews can’t be diminished, though.
This would have been the perfect episode of “Dynamite” to introduce a “November Rain” music video or a stylish video package for the Kris Statlander/Mercedes Mone trilogy. The production team could have created a vignette to announce this year’s “Continental Classic.” They could have opened the show with a highlight reel from last week’s two “Blood and Guts” matches.
Instead, we were given three hours of apathetic television.
This wasn’t a classic case of a booker phoning it in, either. It felt like Tony Khan used a bad ChatGPT prompt to book this week’s episode. It lacked all of the heart and uniqueness that made “Dynamite” a welcomed alternative to WWE – segueing from match to match with as little grace as imaginable.
The Mark Briscoe/Kyle Fletcher backstage interview with Alicia Atout felt like public-access television. Kenny Omega’s advertised return amounted to little more than a failed run-in.
The greatest injustice of this week’s episode was the Anna Jay/Tay Melo loss in the quarterfinals of the AEW Women’s Tag Team Championship Tournament, to Marina Shafir and Megan Bayne. For years, TayJay seemed destined to be positioned as the cornerstone of an eventual women’s tag division. Their street fights with Penelope Ford & The Bunny, as well as Willow Nightingale & Kris Statlander, were standout performances for the division.
I try not to get overly sentimental over creative decisions, because the wins and losses don’t entirely matter. Professional wrestling is predetermined, after all. However, promoters should reward wrestlers meritocratically, and there’s no denying that Anna Jay and Tay Melo are committed to the health and wellbeing of the women’s tag division. The fans obviously support them. So, why did they lose to Shafir and Bayne?
The highlight of this week’s episode was the impassioned promo that Kyle O’Reilly cut on Jon Moxley, challenging the “Death Rider” to a no-holds barred match at “Full Gear.” In one month, O’Reilly has blossomed into a fledgling star. That’s no surprise though, Moxley has the Midas touch.
.@KORCombat wants @JonMoxley at #AEWFullGear NO HOLDS BARRED!
Watch #AEWDynamite LIVE on TBS & HBO Max pic.twitter.com/2MBSJ5ohLS
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) November 20, 2025
Final Verdict
This column grants me an opportunity to opine on professional wrestling. While I am a critic, of sorts, it’s still a labor of love – so I don’t take any pleasure in criticizing things that I don’t enjoy. In an artistic medium that is inexorably tied to the performer’s ability to resonate with the audience, it seems antithetical.
If it wasn’t already apparent, I loathed this week’s episode of “Dynamite.” So, in turn, I loathed penning this review. I’m sure that only exacerbated my dread. Instead of setting this aside in favor of finishing Sterlin Harjo’s “The Lowdown,” the taste lingered. Hopefully, Tony Khan abandons this three-hour formula for the go-home episode of “Dynamite,” because it simply isn’t working.
Rating: *¾
Match Ratings
| Match | Rating |
| Ricochet vs. Bobby Lashley | *** |
| Josh Alexander & Young Bucks vs. SkyFlight | **¾ |
| “Speedball” Mike Bailey vs. Shelton Benjamin | ***¼ |
| Jon Moxley & Claudio Castagnoli vs. Orange Cassidy & Roderick Strong | *** |
| Timeless Love Bombs vs. Alex Windsor & Riho | **¾ |
| “Hangman” Adam Page vs. Katsuyori Shibata | ***¼ |
| TayJay vs. Megan Bayne & Marina Shafir | **½ |
| Kazuchika Okada vs. Mascara Dorada | *** |
| Mercedes Mone [c] vs. Red Velvet [c] | *** |
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