AEW returned to Milwaukee at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena for “Dynamite.”
This show continued the brief build towards this Saturday’s Pay-Per-View, “All Out,” but vastly improved upon last week’s disappointing outing.
The opening and closing segments were brilliant, elevating an otherwise mediocre episode with moments that fans will remember for years to come.
HIT: The Cold Open
Daniel Garcia made his way to the ring, refusing to wait until “All Out” to wrestle Maxwell Jacob Friedman. Instead, he challenged the former International Champion to a match in Milwaukee.
Naturally, MJF declined Garcia’s challenge, awaiting his arrival nearby in the stands with a glass of wine. Garcia viciously insulted MJF, particularly for his haphazard attempts to use makeup to conceal his acne and spending exorbitant amounts of money to salvage his receding hairline. Then, Garcia reiterated that he still intends to break MJF’s neck.
MJF response was to denigrate Garcia’s mother, coaxing him to storm the stands. As soon as Garcia was within arms length, MJF struck him with a wine bottle — shattering it over his head and knocking him out. MJF sat down next to Garcia, who looked like he was slipping in and out of consciousness, and told him that every man has to walk through hell, before he reaches paradise. At “All Out,” MJF is going to send Garcia straight to paradise.
This was a phenomenal way to open the show. MJF always swings for the fences and this was no exception. However, Garcia’s contributions were equally as impressive, once again rising to the occasion. This was a homerun.
HIT: Mark Briscoe’s “Word of the Day”
While Mark Briscoe is the Ring of Honor world champion, he’s become a fixture of AEW programming as the de facto leader of The Conglomeration.
While I’m not enamored with the faction, Briscoe’s weekly “word of the day” segments with his Conglomeration stablemates have become highlights of “Dynamite;” reminiscent of great backstage studio wrestling interviews from the 1980’s. Briscoe has become one of the most entertaining characters in wrestling today and I’m glad he’s found a home in AEW.
This week’s word of the day was “stupendous.” For example, Mark Briscoe’s promos are stupendous.
HIT: Jon Moxley
Jon Moxley continued his bizarre crusade, approaching Jack Perry backstage and calling him a “sweet kid.” Afterwards, he made his way to the ring with Marina Shafir, reissuing his challenge to Darby Allin. Moxley spoke highly of Allin, fondly remembering how impressed he was by him during their first encounter in 2019.
There have been rumors circulating for the past two weeks that Tony Khan has seriously considered putting the AEW world championship on Darby Allin. Who could possibly be a better litmus test for Allin than a former three-time champion in Moxley? If this feud provides Allin with the chance to prove that he’s made of championship material, then I’m excited to see where this is heading.
MISS: Main Event
It’s Wednesday night, you know what that means!? Kyle O’Reilly and Orange Cassidy are going to find a way to wrestle.
While I love watching Will Ospreay, PAC and Claudio Castagnoli in a vacuum, this match was utterly forgettable. I’m not sold on the Blackpool Combat Club & PAC as AEW world trios champions. In fact, I’m not sold on the AEW trios division. Six-man tag team wrestling is fun, but it doesn’t require a unique championship. If a three-man team wants to win championship gold, they can challenge for the AEW world tag team championship. The “Freebird Rule” solved that dilemma forty years ago.
The fact that this match earned a main event billing, instead of former AEW women’s world champion Nyla Rose, challenging the current champion Mariah May, is heinous.
HIT: Swerve Strickland & “Hangman” Page’s Contract Signing
On the eve of “All In,” former AEW world champion Swerve Strickland signed a very lucrative deal with AEW. Earlier this week, it was announced that Strickland celebrated his new deal by purchasing his childhood home in Tacoma. The video aired on last night’s episode of “Dynamite,” setting the stage for the evening’s final segment.
Strickland made his way to the ring, accompanied by his manager and confidant, Prince Nana. However, “Hangman” Adam Page failed to exit the tunnel after his music played. Tony Schiavone, who was expecting to moderate the contract signing, queued Page’s music once again to no avail.
After that, a live transmission of Page begins to air, inside of Strickland’s newly acquired home. For all of Strickland’s transgressions, Page promised he would burn Strickland’s world to the ground. For now, he’ll settle for Strickland’s new home. Page douses each room with gasoline as he wanders through the house and down the porch.
Finally, Page sits down on an arm chair outside, with a beer in his hand, lighting a match that sets the trail of gasoline ablaze. Strickland is devastated, helplessly watching from the ring while his home is engulfed in flames.
This segment was brilliant. This is how you generate interest in a pay-per-view. These two men have no need for a contract, because this outcome is inevitable. Once Strickland invaded Page’s home, this ceased to be a feud between two wrestlers.
To this point, Page hadn’t done anything that made him unworthy of our sympathy. Finally, there’s a sense that the score has been settled. The only question that remains is whether or not Page will finally manage to defeat Strickland in singles competition. We’ll find out when these two men meet in a steel cage this Saturday.
I can’t wait to see who stands victorious. These two have redefined what it means to go “all out.”
The rest of the week’s programming
Friday Night “Collision”
- Continental Contenders Challenges:
- Konosuke Takeshita vs. The Beast Mortos
- Lance Archer vs. Mark Briscoe
- Orange Cassidy
- Deonna Purrazzo vs. Hikaru Shida
- The Blackpool Combat Club & PAC vs. The Elite
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