By Jake Barnett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@barnettjake)
AEW Dynamite (Episode 77)
Taped March 11, 2021 in Jacksonville, Florida at Daily’s Place
Aired March 17, 2021 on TNT
[Hour One] Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, and Excalibur welcomed us to the show. Video was shown of MJF’s new faction deplaning and then entering a limo. Penta El Zero M made his entrance and was shown making a picture in picture promo. The translator said that Penta would break Cody’s arm and send on early paternity leave. Cody then made his entrance, joined by Arn Anderson. Penta dove over the ropes and tackled Cody before he could reach the ring.
1. Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Cody Rhodes: Penta took the match to the floor and focused on Cody’s arm and right hamstring. Cody fired back with a heavy forearm shot and shoved Penta into the barricade. In the ring, Penta tore off Cody’s green St. Patrick’s Day shirt and chopped him several times. Cody fired up and asked Penta to hit him again, and got his wish. Cody landed a hard strike in response, but Penta cut him off immediately with a slingblade.
He followed up with a backstabber, and then exited the ring to set up a table on the outside. Cody missed a lariat attempt, and Penta landed a pump kick. The action went back into the ring, and both men met on the top rope. Cody then landed a top rope huracarrana. Penta recovered quickly and went back to targeting Cody’s bicep and shoulder. Cody sent Penta to the floor and landed a dive that sent Penta through the ringside table.
Back in the ring, Cody landed a destroyer and a Cody Cutter for a near fall. He then set up for and executed CrossRhodes, but Penta once again kicked out at two. Cody pulled Penta to his feet and landed a Vertebreaker, but once again he couldn’t put Penta away. Penta slapped Cody across the face, and he responded by wrapping Penta’s knee around the ring post. He then applied the Figure Four. Aubrey was in a good position, and Penta forced a break by reaching the ropes.
Cody went to apply the figure four again, but Penta escaped and snapped his arm. Cody quickly pulled Penta into a roll up while he was taunting the crowd, and got the quick pin.
Cody Rhodes defeated Penta El Zero Miedo at 10:25
After the match, Penta assaulted Cody’s injured arm and shoulder with repeated strikes and punches. Dustin Rhodes and The Gunn Club ran out to make the save. Penta escaped to the outside, and eventually up the ramp. QT Marshall met Penta at the top of the ramp, and got booed. The rest of the Nightmare Family was frustrated that he was late, as if it would have made a difference.
Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa, and Moxley & Kingston vs The Good Brothers, Christian Cage speaks, and a couple of tag matches that flashed by. Backstage, The Young Bucks were interviewed by Alex Marvez. Matt Jackson said Rey Fenix had beaten both of them in singles competition, but luckily for them these were the World Tag Team Championships. Don Callis walked up and handed them a “Don’t Slap the Leg” T-Shirt to give to their Dad. He also said that they had started this place, but there was nothing Elite left about them. Callis brought up Kenny Omega, and The Bucks accused him of changing Kenny.
Callis said he did change, but for the better. He made him a God of Wrestling, and said Kenny looks down on them because there was nothing elite left about them. He then asked The Bucks to ask themselves if they even resembled the team he saw in New Japan. Jade Cargill was hyped for being in action later…[c]
My Take: Why did Cody need a win there? Why am I supposed to care about the nightmare family? The Don Callis promo with the Bucks was entertaining.
Jade Cargill made her entrance. Dani Jordyn was already in the ring.
2. Jade Cargill vs. Dani Jordyn: Jordyn landed a back elbow to escape a waist lock, but Cargill exploded with a pump kick as Jordyn rebounded off the ropes. Cargill then landed a release German Suplex, followed by the Jaded (Glam Slam) for the win.
Jade Cargill defeated Dani Jordyn at 1:18
After the match, Jade and Red Velvet jawed at ringside before betting separated by Bryce Remsburg. Jade then took off to the back, but stopped and posed a bit before finally leaving. The announce team then aired a video package that recapped the conclusion to last week’s show.
MJF walked out with Tully Blanchard, Wardlow, FTR, and Shawn Spears. Tully took the microphone to start the promo. He said it was great being in the middle of the ring with this group of guys. He said last week they stood in the middle of the ring with the greatest group AEW had, the Inner Circle.
Blanchard recounted how we saw Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, Santana and Ortiz, and Jake Hager beat down last week. He said since they were the greatest group, and they knocked them off, that puts them at the pinnacle of the sport. He said he 30 years ago he was with the greatest group of guys in professional wrestling, and he would end his career doing the same, and you can mark the words.
Blanchard handed the microphone to MJF, who said he was Judas now. He said it wasn’t easy being the most charismatic man in pro wrestling and taking a back seat to Chris Jericho, and he had to stand back as far as Jericho’s hairline. He said he managed to convince every mouth breather at home that he wanted to take over the Inner Circle, with the goal of destroying the inner circle from the inside. MJF said his goal was to create an even better group, and said Tully was correct when he said they are the pinnacle, and asked everybody to look at the lineup.
MJF called Wardlow the most dominant man, and the greatest insurance policy in wrestling. He called Sean Spears “Double S”, and said he was a wrestler’s wrestler that had been held back for far too long. He said if you had a problem with him, to take it up with him, because you’d eat your words and eat a chairshot. He called FTR the greatest tag team on God’s green earth, and said they looked good doing it.
MJF then called himself the most talked about name in wrestling today. He called himself unstoppable both in the ring and on the microphone at 24 years of age. He said he would only get better, just like a fine wine. MJF said he had 25 years left in the tank, and when his career is over, Chris Jericho wouldn’t be the GOAT, it would be “yours truly”. He called their group the backbone of AEW for years to come, and they could capture every premier championship the sport has to offer. As the Pinnacle, they would take what they want, when they want, and what they want right now is Chris Jericho’s locker room.
MJF then turned to deliver a heartwarming message to Jericho, He said he was better than him, and you know it. The Pinnacle huddled in the ring, and then left. Up next is Jurassic Express and Bear Country vs. Matt Hardy, Private Party, Butcher and Blade in 10-man action…[c]
My Take: That promo didn’t really cut much new ground as far as faction introductions go. It’s assembled with the same format shared by any number of Horsemen type factions over the years, and they have basically the same motivations. MJF can carry a lot with his charisma, and Tully was very good for the short time he spoke, so there’s reason to be hopeful this will develop into something that feels new and different.
Matt Hardy and his crew made their entrance. A picture in picture promo aired where Hardy spoke about building an empire. Jurassic Express then made their entrance with Bear Country.
3. Bear Country and Jurassic Express vs. Matt Hardy, Private Party, Butcher and Blade: Marko Stunt slapped Matt Hardy out the gate, and things broke down almost immediately. The babyface squad cleared the heels from the ring. Bear Country then tossed Marko Stunt on the heels at ringside. Things resumed, and Matt Hardy landed a side effect on Jungle Boy. He then tossed him to ringside, where Allie stomped on him…[c]
Luchasaurus cleaned house with kicks on Private Party as the show returned. He then landed a chokeslam on Kassidy, but Butcher broke up the pinfall attempt. Marko ran in and took a cheap shot at Butcher, and then ran away. Luchasaurus recovered and made a tag to Bronson from Bear Country. He landed an exploder suplex on Cassidy. Marko Stunt tagged himself in, and the babyface team argued with one another. They all spilled to ringside, leaving Marko alone. Hardy and Private Party took shots at Stunt. Private Party landed Gin and Juice, and then Hardy tagged himself in. He landed a Twist of Fate for the win.
Matt Hardy, Private Party, Butcher and Blade defeated Bear Country and Jurassic Express at 7:49
After the match, Hardy and his team celebrated. Backstage, Moxley and Kingston had an interview. Moxley said he wasn’t in the great mood. He should be on a beach sipping a Mai Thai, but he has to go to war again. He has to fix his real problem…and that’s the Good Brothers. He said he wasted good money on their PPV, and he couldn’t get their faces out of their mind. He said Gallows had googly eyes like they used to use in Kindergarten. They made fun of Chad 2 Badd, and then Kingston said they had to get serious.
He said this wasn’t Tokyo or the Impact Zone, this was their house. He said they had never shot nothing or popped nothing, so stop fronting. Christian Cage is next…[c]
My Take: Not much to like about that segment. The 10-man Tag was a mess that felt like a time filler without much real direction. The Moxley and Kingston promo was a rare miss from them that seemed to lack focus.
Christian was interviewed backstage by Dasha. He defined the word workhorse as someone who busts their ass every night no matter who they are in the ring with. He said Jon Moxley thought he knew everything there was to know about wrestling until he got in the ring with him. He said he’s not a workhorse, he’s THE Workhorse in pro wrestling. He addressed Kenny and said he stole his time last week, but he was glad he got a chance to introduce himself and let him know he was on borrowed time. He said the reason he’s in AEW is to cement his legacy, and he would do that by outworking everyone.
In the arena, Eddie Kingston made his entrance, but he was jumped from behind immediately by The Good Brothers. Jon Moxley ran in and joined the brawl. Moxley had a bandaged shoulder and arm.
The action spilled to ringside, where Gallows turned the tables on Moxley with some uppercuts. Anderson then threw Moxley into the barricade. Kingston rejoined the fight, but was quickly put down by Anderson. Anderson and Gallows hit a Magic Killer on Moxley on the floor, and then tossed Kingston in the ring. The match then started?
4. Eddie Kingston and Jon Moxley vs. “The Good Brothers” Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson: Anderson and Gallows took turns taking shots at Eddie Kingston. Jon Moxley was still out cold on the floor. Gallows landed a side kick and covered for a two count.
[Hour Two] Moxley crawled over and climbed on the apron, but Gallows quickly gave him a boot back onto the floor…[c]
Moxley, now near death, jumped up on the apron and begged for a tag. Kingston landed a diving shoulder tackle on Gallows, and crawled over to make the tag, but couldn’t make it in time. Anderson entered the match, and Kingston surprised him with an exploder suplex. Kingston made a tag to Moxley, who landed a German Suplex on Anderson as he got in the ring. He then landed a shotgun dropkick, and knocked Gallows off the apron.
Moxley stomped on Anderson in the corner, and then landed another back elbow on Gallows when he tried to intervene. Moxley landed a piledriver on Anderson, but Gallows broke up the fall. He landed a knee strike on Gallows, and then dove on him when he fell to the floor. Anderson caught Moxley with a spinebuster as he re-entered the ring for a near fall. Gallows then tagged in, and they landed a series of double team moves on both Moxley and Kingston. They went for another Magic Killer, but Kingston interrupted it. He and Gallows spilled out to the floor. Moxley then rolled up Anderson and got the win.
Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston defeated Karl Anderson and Doc Gallows at 10:15
After the match, Gallows and Anderson took cheap shots at Moxley, and Kenny Omega made his entrance with Don Callis. Kenny held a steel chair, and sat on it in front of Moxley. Kingston ran in and knocked Omega off the chair, but Gallow and Anderson picked him up and landed a magic killer. Omega stepped on Moxley’s neck, and then wrapped up Kingston’s leg in a steel chair. Moxley tried to stop them, but Anderson jumped off the second rope and stomped on the chair.
They then kicked him out of the ring, and Moxley was beside himself. They tried to wrap the chair around Moxley’s neck, but The Young Bucks ran down and interrupted the proceedings. There were arguments in the ring, and Moxley managed to slowly roll out of the way. They wanted to “Too Sweet” each other, and The Bucks refused. Nick and Matt walked away, but Kenny spun Nick around. Kenny threw up the fingers again, and Matt called him pathetic. Moxley got to his feet with the chair, and swung wildly, clearing the heels from the ring. Moxley’s music hit, and the Young Bucks left. Kingston screamed to get him in the ring with Mox…[c]
My Take: That was an ok match, but the pre-match beat down meant they left a lot in the tank for future encounters. It seems like they are setting up Moxley and The Bucks to take on Omega and The Good Brothers, but part of me wonders if that’s another incoming swerve given how AEW has been booked in recent months and the Callis promo with The Bucks earlier.
Sting made his entrance for his weekly promo segment. He was then joined by Darby Allin. The announce table mentioned the attack from Scorpio Sky last week. Tony asked about the post match attack, and Darby spoke about defending his TNT Championship 3 times since November. He said he wanted to be a fighting champion week in and week out, and defend it as a tribute to the greatest TNT Champion of all time. A Brodie chant broke out, and Darby called out Dark Order to come and get the title back.
Lance Archer walked out and called Darby an internet favorite, but a huge indie-riffic joke. He said he didn’t care if he was taking their time, and asked how many times Schiavone was going to interview Sting. Jake Roberts jumped on the mic and told Sting that he was playing with fire, and told him Archer was the most dangerous man in AEW. Team Taz then interrupted, and Brian Cage told Sting he respected him, and told him he was still the Icon despite what Ricky Starks said. Taz and everyone else were furious that he said it. They then cut to a video package, where Scorpio Sky said he would no longer be a stepping stone, and if he had to hurt people to accomplish his goals, so be it.
In the arena, Angelico was already in the ring. Fenix and Pac made their entrance, with Fenix wrestling.
5. Angelico vs. Fenix (w/Pac): Angelico got off to a hot start, targeting Fenix’s lower back…[c]
Fenix landed a flying head scissors, and then spiked Angelico with a cutter. Angelico managed to apply the Navarro Death Roll, but Fenix quickly scrambled to the ropes. Both men traded pinfalls in a rapid sequence, and then traded kicks. Fenix then landed a crucifix bomb, followed by a sit out piledriver for the win.
Fenix defeated Angelico at 7:37
After the match, Alex Marvez interviewed Miro and asked about the challenge from Chuck and Cassidy. He initially said he wasn’t interested, but Kip walked up and said he couldn’t let what happened at his wedding go. Miro asked if he blamed him for what happened at the wedding, and Kip said no, but mentioned that he did shove him into his wife, and said she was hurt. Miro said the worst thing for his career was having his wife at ringside. He then said once the bell rings, he wouldn’t let him or his wife stop him from reaching his destiny of being a World Champion. He then said they were still friends outside the ring. Kip accepted the match after Marvez pressed him…[c]
My Take: The Sting, Darby, Archer, Roberts, and Team Taz segment was a bit of a mess. All of them struggled with their lines, and the pace of the segment was a bit off. Fenix and Angelico were fine, but didn’t seem related to any story they are involved in. I still can’t be bothered to care about anything Kip or Miro are doing, but Miro seems to be hinting at going out on his own, which would be a huge improvement.
Backstage, The Pinnacle took over the Inner Circle locker room. In the arena, Justin Roberts gave the lights out match disclaimer.
Britt Baker made her entrance with Rebel. Thunder Rosa followed. Baker jawed with Rosa, and Rebel hit her with a crutch from behind.
6. Thunder Rosa vs. Britt Baker (w/Rebel) in a lights out, unsanctioned match: They spilled out onto the stage. Baker landed an air raid crash on the stage on Rosa. Things spilled around the ring, and Baker attempted to hit Rosa with a chair, but missed. Rosa then tossed the chair into Baker’s face, and then hit Rebel in the gut with it. She then tossed Baker into the stands, and followed through the crowd. Rosa slammed Baker into a chair in the crowd, and then sat her down. She then ran at her, but ended up landing a senton on the chair when Baker moved out of the way.
Britt and Rosa spilled back into the ringside area, and traded punches. Rosa was thrown into the area near the stage. Rebel and Britt set up a table at ringside. Rosa climbed up near the ring steps, and Baker stomped her head into the stairs. Baker then tossed several chairs into the ring…[c]
Rosa suplexed Baker in the corner, and covered for a two count. She then grabbed one of the chairs in the ring and slammed it across Baker’s back. Britt recovered and superplexed Rosa onto the chairs in the ring for a near fall. Rebel pulled out a ladder and placed it in the ring. Rosa then drove Baker’s face into the ladder when she crawled to reach for it. Rosa then picked up the ladder and used it to choke Baker in the corner. She then kicked the ladder into the face of Baker.
Rosa went to collect a table at ringside, and Baker came up bleeding. Rosa attempted to pull Baker to the floor, who was bleeding heavily. Rosa targeted the cut, but Baker replied with a superkick. Baker then landed a flatliner on a ladder that was propped up on the first rope. Both women, now bloody, climbed the ropes in the corner. Rosa then landed a Death Valley Driver onto the ladder.
Rosa covered, and only got a near fall. Rosa set up a chair in the middle of the ring. Baker then quickly popped up and landed a DDT on the chair. She then stomped Rosa’s face into the chair, but Rosa managed to kick out. Baker got her glove on to apply Lockjaw. Rebel then grabbed a bag of thumbtacks, and Baker poured them out in the ring. Baker went for a neckbreaker, but Rosa reversed. Rebel tried to interfere, but Rosa kicked her through a table at ringside. Rosa then powerbombed Baker through the tacks, but that wasn’t enough to get the win.
Baker managed to apply Lockjaw on top of the tacks, but Rosa managed to find a way to escape. Baker landed a superkick that staggered Rosa. The battled near the ropes on the apron. Rosa managed to land a Fire Thunder Driver through the table that was set up at ringside. She then covered on the floor to get the win.
Thunder Rosa defeated Britt Baker at 14:58 in a lights out, unsanctioned match.
After the match, Rosa celebrated as Baker caught her breath on the ground in some serious pain.
My Take: A violent match worthy of the unsanctioned stipulation, and one of the best Dynamite Main Events in recent memory. They took a while to pay off this story, but both women delivered big time in a match that seemingly both of them needed to win. Both came across as legitimate badasses, and showed incredible toughness working through some very difficult and painful experiences. Rosa should be the next woman to take on Shida, and I wouldn’t mind seeing her capture the AEW Women’s Championship. She’s been a difference maker for AEW and has all the tools to be a leader in the division.
Watch something else if you don’t like AEW. You suck as a reviewer.
Another satisfied customer.
Lol, only a total moron thinks someone sucks as a reviewer because they don’t blindly worship a company like a fanboy sheep. Maybe you should quit grasping AEW’s dick and instead try grasping the FACT they they do as much dumb/bad shit as they do good stuff.
The spray tan discoloration on MJF’s ears and neck was incredibly distracting.