10/23 AEW Dynamite TV results: Barnett’s live review of Jon Moxley vs. Pac, Private Party vs. Pentagon Jr. and Fenix and Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky vs. The Dark Order in AEW Tag Title tournament semifinal matches, The Young Bucks vs. Best Friends

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By Jake Barnett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@barnettjake)

AEW Wednesday Night Dynamite on TNT
Aired live on October 23, 2019 from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at Petersen Events Center

The show kicked off with Private Party and The Lucha Brothers already in the ring. Justin Roberts gave ring introductions. The announce team eventually chimed in and welcomed us to Pittsburgh.

1. Private Party vs. The Lucha Brothers: They both avoided each other’s offense for a bit, but Penta was able to hit a strike from the apron to slow down Quen. This allowed Fenix to hit a german suplex, and knock Kassidy off the apron. Penta tagged in and hit a big slap to the chest. Quen fired back by reversing a pancake attempt into a dropkick that hit both Fenix and Pentagon. 

Kassidy tagged in and they began to double up on Fenix. Kassidy hit a kick to the head, and Quen hit a modified curbstomp. Quen then hit a somersault splash onto Fenix on the floor from the top rope. In the ring, Kassidy hit an enziguri on Pentagon. After he recovered, Pentagon tried to throw Kassidy out of the ring, but he used Quen’s assist to rebound back into the ring and hit a DDT. Quen then hit a 450 from the top, but only got a two count on a lazy cover. 

Fenix got tagged in and hit a huge double stomp on Quen. Pentagon followed up a moment later with one of his own. Kassidy re-entered the match, but after a combination of moves and some confusion, Quen ended up hitting him with a poisoned huracarrana by mistake. Fenix then hit a soaring moonsault to the floor. Penta then hit a sitout powerbomb in the ring on Cassidy for a near fall. 

Fenix had the advantage for a moment, but Quen managed to escape and made a flailing tag to Kassidy, who entered and hit a flurry of head scissors and moonsaults on both Penta and Fenix. He then hit a springboard crucifix bomb on Fenix for a near fall. Quen tagged in again and both of them were showing fatigue. Kassidy hit a stunner and sliced bread on Fenix, and then hit a tornillo on Pentagon on the floor. Quen went up top and hitting a shooting star press for another close near fall. 

Fenis took control and hit a Gory Bomb and leg drop combination on both Quen and Kassidy. Penta entered and grabbed Kassidy for a Powerbomb onto his knee. He then picked up Quen for a spike cradle piledriver, but Quen escaped. Private Party then hit Gin and Juice on Fenix, but he wasn’t the legal man. Fenix hit a big knee on Quen and then Penta grabbed him for an armbreaker. They then hit Quen with the spiked cradle piledriver for the win. 

The Lucha Brothers defeated Private Party at 12:32

Penta and Fenix celebrated after the match, and Private Party sold the effects of the match. The announce team then threw to a video package for the incoming talent Wardlow. After the video, the brackets for the tag tournament were shown. It was also announced that Christopher Daniels would be out for 6-8 weeks. SCU then made their entrance for the next match with The Dark Order…[c]

My Take: A wild match with a ton of action crammed into 12 minutes. Perhaps the most action you could possibly cram into 12 minutes. It was a bit sloppy at times, and people had to wait for their spots in some awkward positions, but the crowd loved it. The style and lack of selling isn’t to my particular taste, but you can’t deny the athleticism.

The Dark Order made their entrance after a brief commercial break. 

2. The Dark Order vs. SCU: Kazarian started the match with Stu Grayson. Kazarian hit a few arm drags before Evil Uno got the tag. Kazarian quickly made a tag to Scorpio Sky, who entered and traded shots with both Uno and Grayson. He hit a double stomp to Grayson’s back before tagging Kazarian into the match. SCU made quick tags, isolating Grayson in their corner. Grayson managed to avoid a kick and shoved Sky to the outside. Evil Uno then took Sky around the outside of the ring and tossed him into the ring steps. Uno then shoved Sky into the ring for a near fall.

The show cut to split screen for some advertising. During the break, The Dark Order maintained control and taunted the crowd. They isolated Sky on the outside and in their corner, and focused on his head and shoulder that had gotten tossed into the ring steps earlier. Evil Uno hit a suplex and covered for a two count. The inner circle were shown walking through the crowd with tickets. The announcers said they weren’t scheduled to be there? They ended up in a luxury box. 

Sky broke free of Evil Uno with a neckbreaker and tagged in Kazarian. Stu Grayson also tagged in. Kazarian cleaned house and hit a big flying forearm on Grayson. He then hit a springboard leg drop on Grayson, and then sent Evil Uno to the floor briefly. Kazarian rolled up Uno and hit Grayson with a Northern Lights Suplex for a combo near fall. The match broke down with all four men in the ring for a period. Scorpio Sky was catapulted into Kazarian in the corner. Evil Uno then hit a sit out powerbomb on Kazarian for a near fall. 

Kazarian fired up and hit a backstabber on Uno. Sky then hit him with a springboard cutter. Kazarian and Sky then both applied German Sleeper’s to each member of the Dark Order. Stu Grayson tried to walk on the shoulders of Uno for a huracarrana, but it didn’t pan out. Grayson then went over the ropes in the corner onto Kazarian. Uno then caught Sky with a DDT for a near fall. 

Grayson tried to enter back into the match, but Sky repelled both members of the Dark Order. Kazarian entered and sent Evil Uno to the floor. Sky set up in Grayson position for a Gory Special, and then tossed him into Kazarian’s knee for an SCU Later. Sky covered Grayson for the win. 

SCU defeated The Dark Order at 14:05

SCU celebrated after the match…[c]

My Take: A whirlwind start to this show, with two matches over ten minutes. I haven’t been a fan of the Dark Order act, and this match cemented that they are very good wrestlers with a gimmick that doesn’t work. The crowd was behind SCU, but even then announce team had a hard time trying to explain what they are. The match was enjoyable, but it didn’t quite live up to the intensity or flashiness of the opener.

Joey Janela made his entrance. Footage was shown of his matches with Moxley and Omega. Kenny Omega then made his entrance while footage was shown of him winning the AAA Mega Championship. 

3. Kenny Omega vs. Joey Janela: Omega and Janela traded holds to start. Janela blocked a few Omega attacks, but eventually ate a knee and a front kick that sent him to the floor. Omega hit a pescado out to the floor and then tossed Janela back in. Excalibur called Kenny Omega a temporal wizard that can control time. Schiavone glibly commented that he always thought JR was a temporal wizard. 

Janela hit the top rope, and Kenny tried to toss him back into the ring, but Janela rolled through and landed on his feet. Janela then send Omega to the floor and hit a splash from the top rope. He then rolled Omega in and covered for a near fall…[c]

Omega dominated the break, even hitting a Terminator Tope that the TV audience didn’t get to see. Whoops. Omega hit two snap dragon suplexes. Janela countered an attempt at a third, and then tossed Kenny Omega down into the bottom turnbuckle. He didn’t look like he hit it. Janela then hit a top rope elbow for a near fall. Omega recovered and hit another snap dragon suplex and a V-Trigger knee for a close near fall. 

Omega set up for another V-Trigger, but Janela countered into a German Suplex. They then traded kicks and knees until Janela hit a Fisherman’s Buster. He then hit the ropes and landed a big lariat for another near fall. The crowd has been very into the near falls. Omega rolled out to the apron, and Omega tried to hit a somersault senton from the top rope, but Omega avoided it for Janela to crash and burn. Omega then hit a huge V-Trigger, followed by a One Winged Angel for the win. 

Kenny Omega defeated Joey Janela at 13:10

After the match, Omega poured some water over his head and then checked on Janela. Cody Rhodes then made his elaborate entrance for an interview with Tony Schiavone. [c]

My Take: Both men really shined here. Omega for his freakish athleticism and Janela for his risk taking and toughness. Personally, I could have dealt with a bit more space in between spots to sell moves, but that’s just not AEW’s style at this point. 

Schiavone brought up Full Gear and Cody’s match with Chris Jericho. Cody tried to speak, but the Inner Circle kept interrupting him with air horns. Cody had a major announcement. He said he had the privilege of growing up in front of everyone, and it was a privilege to be able to make this announcement here and now. Jericho interrupted by producing a microphone, and Cody addressed him and said this isn’t like the other company with invisible walls, he could easily come up there to fight him right here and now. 

Jericho told the crowd to shut up. He called Cody smart, and said he had a lot of bravado, but he’s better off not doing anything that will get him hurt. Jericho called him an entitled millennial bitch. Cody started to climb over the barricade, and Jericho reminded him that it was four on one. Dustin Rhodes walked down, and Jericho asked if his big brother was going to save him. MJF then walked down, and Jericho mocked him for wearing a scarf. DDP then walked out….and then odds were even. 

Cody’s Crew walked to ringside to join him, and then they headed up the stairs towards the box seats. The inner circle then backed off and left into a locked room. Cody used MJF’s scarf to punch the window out, and then a big brawl broke out in the concourse of the arena. Security ended up separating them, and Jericho whined about having a ticket and being assaulted in his private suite. Cody was escorted down a stairwell, and the police followed him. The broadcast went split screen, with Jericho continuing to alternate between bragging and whining.

My Take: An effective angle, and the glass break was a nice visual. Hopefully it was sugar glass. They succeeded at continuing to ratchet up the personal conflict with Jericho and Rhodes. I wish more of the Full Gear matches got effective angles like this.

Best Friends made their entrance with Orange Cassidy. They were followed by The Young Bucks. The Bucks had a big pyro explosion that sent fake money with their faces on it. Young Bucks Bucks. Orange Cassidy did his low impact offense on The Young Bucks, but they blasted him with a double superkick. 

4. Best Friends vs. The Young Bucks: Chuck and Trent hit Nick Jackson with an assisted Cutter. Trent and Nick were then legal men. Nick fired back with a leg drop on Trent, and then took out Chuck on the apron. Matt then tagged in, and they hit two combination backbreakers on Trent, before stealing the Best Friends gimmick and giving each other a hug. This fired up Chuck, who hit a spear out on the floor on Nick, and sent Matt into the barricade. 

Matt and Trent ended up back in the ring. Trent sent Matt into the corner, but he hit a springboard out to the apron and hit a DDT on Chuck. Orange Cassidy caused a distraction, which allowed Trent to hit Matt with a baseball slide. Trent brought Matt back in the ring, only to clothesline him to the floor a moment later…[c]

Nick went for a 450 from the top, but Trent avoided it. Nick hit Trent with a kick to the head, but he no sold it and grabbed Nick for a German Suplex. Trent then tagged in and threw both Nick and Matt around with Suplexes, and then hit Matt with a powerbomb for a near fall. He then sent Matt into the corner, and suplex Nick into him. Chuck followed up with a Falcon Arrow for a near fall. Chuck climbed up to the top, but Matt met him up top. Trent followed Matt to the top and hit a German Suplex. 

Chuck and Trent hit a Sole Food and Half and Half Combo. Matt and Nick were on the floor, and Orange Cassidy splashed them with his hands in his pockets. Back in the ring, Chuck hit an assisted sit out powerbomb on Matt. Nick had to break up the pin. Trent got cleared from the ring, and Nick Jackson splashed both Orange Cassidy and Trent out on the floor. The Bucks hit More Bang for your Buck on Chuck to get the win. 

The Young Bucks defeated Best Friends at 11:32

After the match, The Young Bucks accepted Santana and Ortiz’s challenge for Full Gear. We then got a video package that highlighted Britt Baker’s backstory in Pittsburgh. Back in the arena, Jamie Hayter made her entrance. She is Bea Priestley’s partner in Stardom. She was followed by Britt Baker. She was accompanied by the Steelers mascot. Britt got a strong reaction in her hometown. She wore a Steelers themed outfit.  

5. Britt Baker vs. Jamie Hayter: Hayter Suplexed Baker into the turnbuckles. She then kicked Baker out to the floor. On the outside, Hayter mocked the crowd and tossed Baker hard into the barricade. Baker fired back with a slingblade out on the floor…[c]

My Take: The crowd is red hot tonight, and The Bucks and Best Friends match was no different. This was Best Friends best in ring effort in AEW, and The Bucks are consistently good. There wasn’t much selling, which has been par for the course tonight, but the crowds are responding to everything.

Hayter controlled the action during the break, and mocked the crowd in the process. Baker started a comeback, but Hayter jumped on her back for a sleeper hold. Baker jumped backward and broke free. Hayter recovered and hit a suplex and a running knee. Hayter went to the top rope, and Baker followed her and hit a top rope suplex for a two count. Hayter fired back with a uranage and a lariat for a near fall. 

Hayter hit the ropes for another lariat, but Baker hit a superkick. She then hit a neckbreaker, and then another superkick. Baker then applied her Lockjaw finisher for the submission victory. 

Britt Baker defeated Jamie Hayter at 8:36

After the match, Baker celebrated. The announce team plugged SCU and Lucha Brothers for next week. We then got a recap of the brawl between The Inner Circle and Cody’s crew earlier. Pac vs. Moxley is coming up quickly. Jenn Decker was backstage to interview Jamie Hayter, when Brandi showed up and shoved her from behind. She then did some angry pointing at Decker, and walked off…[c]

My Take: I guess Brandi is really angry now? Hayter’s offense looked better than Baker’s during the women’s match. She looks like she could be a strong contributor to the women’s division if they bring her in more often. Baker got a strong hometown reaction, and her finisher looks good, but I think her offense looked a bit soft at times during the match.

Jon Moxley made his entrance, but Pac snuck up from behind and hit him with a chair to the back of the head or neck. The then choked him with the chair as both men spilled to ringside. Pac tossed Moxley into the barricade twice. Pac got in the ring, and Moxley shoved aside referees to do the same. 

6. Pac vs. Jon Moxley: Pac hit an enziguri. He then set up for the Black Arrow, but Moxley rolled to the outside. Pac followed with a splash over the ropes, and then tossed Moxley back in the ring for a two count. Pac continued the assault and hit a diving kick. He then choked him in the corner with a foot to the neck…[c]

Pac continued the assault and worked over Moxley’s head and neck. Every time Moxley would begin his comeback, Pac would quickly cut him down. Pac hit some kicks to the chest, and Moxley demanded more. He then hit a head kick and a standing shooting star press for a near fall. Pac went for a german suplex on the apron, but Mox reversed and spiked him with a bulldog into the crown of his head. 

Both men traded forearms until Moxley opened up with a Lariat. Pac fired back with kicks, but Moxley flipped him inside out with another lariat. He then hit a suplex and covered for a near fall. Moxley went for a regal knee, but Pac rolled to the outside. He then hit a suicide dive out to the floor. He then hit a black hole slam back in the ring, followed by a Regal knee for a near fall. Moxley then applied a Cloverleaf. Justin Roberts announce 4 minutes of TV time remaining. 

Moxley went up top, and got crotched on the top rope. Pac followed and hit an avalanche falcon arrow for a close near fall. Moxley dragged Pac into position for a Black Arrow, but Moxley avoided it and rolled him up for a two count. Pac pulled Moxley out of the ring from the apron, and hit a 450 on the floor. He then went for a Black Arrow, but nobody was home. With one minute remaining, both men were down. 

Moxley crawled over for a cover, but didn’t get it. Moxley then hit the Paradigm Shift, and Pac kicked out as the time limit expired. 

The match ended in a time limit draw at 12:10.

After the match, Moxley hit the referee with a Paradigm Shift. He said “TV Time limit my ass” as the show went off the air. 

My Take: This match had the best psychology of the night, and I like the time limit draw as a finish for two guys that do not need to take a loss at this point. Moxley sold the early beat down well, and looked disheveled for the entire match. Pac took a crazy bulldog bump on the apron, and that factored into his balance as he went for the black arrow later on in the match. Overall, this was another strong episode of Dynamite. All the pieces are in place for a great PPV at Full Gear. I still think AEW has some work to do in the remaining TV to sell people on the other matches besides Cody and Jericho. The show could use more storytelling vignettes and live promos over the next few weeks to really establish who these characters are.

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Readers Comments (3)

  1. The wrestlers in the Dark Order aren’t bad, but the gimmick is a miss for me.

    Expecting SCU vs Lucha Bros, which should be epic!

  2. An enjoyable main event, a fantastic segment with Cody & Friends and the Inner Circle, and some good tag team tournament matches. On the other hand, I wouldn’t have added another tag team match to the show when the tournament is already happening – the last two weeks have arguably been a bit too tag team-heavy.

    And my God, Justin Roberts is insufferable.

  3. No selling, no selling, no selling. Doing moves and being athletic isn’t the same thing as working a wrestling match and almost nobody in AEW can work.

    I’ll be shocked if the ratings don’t take another drop this week.

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