By Jake Barnett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@barnettjake)
AEW Dynamite (Episode 152)
Chicago, Illinois at NOW Arena
Aired live August 31, 2022 on TBS
[Hour One] Jon Moxley’s music hit and he made his way to the ring. Jim Ross, Excalibur, and Taz were on commentary. Moxley carried one Championship to the ring as the now Undisputed AEW World Champion. The announce team speculated about whether CM Punk came back too soon, but praised Moxley for seizing the moment.
Moxley took his sweet time getting into the ring, and the Chicago crowd gave him a bit of a mixed reaction once he grabbed the microphone. Loud CM Punk chants broke out, and Moxley soaked it in for a moment and then smiled. A counter chant of Moxley started. Jon opened his promo by saying that he thinks they are still mopping CM Punk off the mat in Cleveland. Mox then said he one heard Punk styled as the modern 60 minute man, but that turned out to be a load of crap.
He then said that he had 57 minutes left in him last week, and asked Punk “Did you?”
Mox said we learned last week what CM Punk was made of. He claimed CM Punk took his best shots, and realized Mox wasn’t going to stop coming at him, and he looked for a way out. Mox claimed he looked for a way out and claimed his foot hurt so he could fold. He then said champions don’t fold, and he’s sorry that Punk didn’t turn out to be who everyone thought he was. Mox then said that Punk has a fragile ego, fragile body, weak mind, and weak spirit. He said it was a tough business, and it is what it is, and we move on.
After pulling a contract out of his pocket, Moxley said when he says anytime, anywhere he means it. He said it could be anybody, including someone from New Japan. He asked Rocky if he had anybody left. He addressed whoever signed the contract, and said he knows he gives fewer shits than they do. He is the human embodiment of the spirit of professional wrestling with an indomitable will. Moxley said wrestling him could be hazardous to your health, and he said he’d see somebody on Sunday.
Moxley then fired up the crowd to his music, and left the ring. The announce team said it would be a wild ride. Ace Steel picked up the contract and headed to the back, possibly intending to give it to CM Punk…
Toni Storm and Hikaru Shida will face Britt Baker and Jami Hayter, plus Jake Hager and Bryan Danielson are up next…
Backstage, Chris Jericho was with Tony Schiavone. He said their match this weekend is a dream match, but a nightmare for Danielson. Jericho said he thought about what Danielson said last week. He thinks the Harts may be impressed by his wrestling skill, but they’d be far more impressed with his career accomplishments. Daniel Garcia approached Jericho and apologized for being immature last week. He pledged his allegiance to the JAS, and said that he knew Jericho would defeat Danielson on Sunday. Jericho accepted his apology, and told Danielson that all is fair in Wrestling and Romance, so he should watch his back…
In the arena, Bryan Danielson made his entrance, followed by Jake Hager with Jericho. Both Regal and Jericho ended up joining on commentary.
1. Bryan Danielson vs. Jake Hager: Both men felt each other out early on. Hager used his power to back Danielson into the corner and land some right hands. He then tossed Jericho over his shoulder and across the ring. Danielson surprised Hager with a guillotine choke, but Hager was able to throw him off. Danielson shoved Hager out of the ring and landed a suicide dive. He then attempted a second apron dive, but Hager caught him and dumped him through the ringside timekeeper’s table.
Hager then picked up Danielson and tossed him into the ring post, and then back into the ring. He then landed some ground and pound forearm shots and punches. Danielson attempted a knee bar, but Hager used his power to prevent any leverage. He then picked up Bryan and landed a spinebuster…[c]
My Take: Moxley delivered a strong promo to open the show. I’m not sure I would have tried to start a mystery plot with the open contract, if you were just going to have Ace Steel grab it 10 seconds later and ruin the suspense. I might have preferred Moxley say all that trash to Punk’s face and get an immediate response. Either way, Moxley did well with the time he had allotted.
Hager continued to dominate throughout the break, and placed Danielson on the top rope. He then landed some punches, but got cocky and taunted the crowd. Danielson recovered enough to land a missile dropkick, and then started his comeback. He landed a series of kicks to the chest, and a final one to the head for a near fall. He then landed some elbows, but Hager used his power to escape and land some more mounted punches.
Danielson reversed into position for a triangle submission, but Hager landed a powerbomb to break free. Hager went for more punches, but Danielson captured one and pulled him into a LeBell Lock. Hager escaped and applied an Ankle Lock briefly, but Bryan escaped and applied the LeBell lock a second time. After a moment, Hager was able to scramble and reach the ropes.
Bryan followed up with some chops in the corner, followed by a running dropkick. He attempted a second one, but Hager caught him with a chokeslam. After some ground reversals, Bryan landed a Busaiku Knee for the win.
Bryan Danielson defeated Jake Hager at 10:51
After the match, Matt Menard and Angelo Parker ran down to wear out Danielson. Wheeler Yuta and Claudio Castagnoli made the save. Jericho attempted to hit Danielson with the chair, but he was stopped by Daniel Garcia. Danielson took advantage and landed a Busaiku Knee, and gave Garcia a sarcastic thanks as he walked away…[c]
My Take: A solid match, but I think Danielson gave too much to Hager, and the first part of the match dragged on a bit while Hager struggled to generate a reaction with his offense. The final 3-5 minutes were much better. Garcia apologizing to Jericho only to cost him in the end would have been better if it seemed like he was more reluctant to make the apology in the first place.
“The Wingmen” Ryan Nemeth, Peter Avalon, Cezar Bononi, and JD Drake were in the ring. They complained about not being booked.
W Morrissey made his entrance to interrupt them. He dropped Bononi with a kick, and then delivered chokeslams to Nemeth and JD Drake. There was destruction all around on the Wingmen.
Stokely Hathaway walked down to ringside. Peter Avalon got a chokeslam for his trouble as well. After the beatdown, Stokely approached and offered Morrissey one of his business cards, which he accepted. They left together.
Stokely was approached by Schiavone and asked what all the business cards were about, and Stokely told him it was none of his business. Tony said they run a TV Show and it is his business, and Stokely grabbed him by the lapels. Tony called him a “jack off”, and Stokely and Morrissey just walked away…
Backstage, Will Ospreay was approached by Don Callis. He gave Ospreay some backhanded compliments, and reminded him that he was beaten by Omega the last time they had a tag match together, but he’s sure it would be different this time…
Britt Baker and Jamie Hayter made their entrance along with Rebel. They were followed by Toni Storm and Hikaru Shida…
2. Hikaru Shida and Toni Storm vs. Jamie Hayter and Britt Baker (w/Rebel): Hayter and Shida started the match and tied up. Hayter was spiked by a head scissors early on in an ugly looking spot. Storm and Shida made rapid tags and isolated the wounded Hayter in their corner. Storm landed a top rope double ax handle from the top. Baker tagged in and used a trip up by Hayter on Storm to take control…[c]
My Take: W. Morrissey is an interesting addition for AEW. I don’t know that they needed to add to an already bloated roster, but in the case of Morrissey he does offer something different than the usual AEW style. We’ll have to see how it pans out with Stokely’s seemingly random faction of misfits.
Storm landed a DDT out of the corner and made a hot tag to Shida. She landed punches in the corner on Hayter, followed by a dropkick. Shida then landed a vertical suplex followed by a Meteora from the second rope for a near fall. Hayter blocked a double suplex attempt, and then suplexed both Shida and Storm in a reversal. Baker tagged in and landed a corkscrew neckbreaker for a close near fall.
Baker got cocky and turned her back on Shida to apply her glove, but got blindsided by dropkick for her trouble. Storm landed a hip attack on Baker, and took Hayter to the floor with a DDT. Shida then landed her Katana Kick for the win.
Hikaru Shida and Toni Storm defeated Britt Baker and Jamie Hayter at 6:53
After the match, we got a video package for Kip Sabian. He explained his master plan that he executed last week when he fooled Pac with a doppelganger. Pac said he had pestered him for the last time. They will have an All Atlantic Championship Match on Sunday at All Out…[c]
My Take: A solid Women’s match. Shida has had the least TV exposure recently, so I wasn’t surprised to see her get a boost with a win here. I still hope they pull the trigger on Toni Storm on Sunday. Putting the title back on Britt Baker would feel like a regression. She’s made no significant changes to her character since the last title reign.
A video package with Miro. He ranted about his God conspiring with the Demons in the House of Black. Miro will take on the House of Black with Sting and Darby Allin on Sunday, or at least that’s how it appeared. No official announcement was made…
In the arena, we got the entrance of CM Punk. He made a slow entrance after his music played for 10 or 15 seconds.
Punk looked dejected and had a microphone. He recalled breaking his foot on June 1st, and that was bad enough, but then he wrestled a match on it and pulverized it. Punk said he had 3 plates and 16 screws in his foot. He said that was 16 more times than some fat guy in the crowd has been screwed in his life. Punk said he probably shouldn’t have said that, and he shouldn’t have done a lot of things, including coming back too early from a very serious injury.
Punk said he got beat up in Cleveland last week, and then had to drive home with only his thoughts. Punk posed the question if his foot is 100%, and he said yes, he was cleared by his doctors and the X-Rays looked good. He said it’s a new 100%, and he’s not sure if that is good enough. Punk said he came back to wrestling last year because he loved wrestling, but the business doesn’t always love him back.
Punk said he also came back because he loves his fans, and it hurts him to feel like he let everybody down. He pointed out his sister in the front row and broke down a little when he explained that he loved her, but maybe that’s good enough either.
[Hour Two] Ace Steel walked out and said this is what they talked about him saying backstage. Ace introduced himself as Punk’s trainer from day one, and called Punk his greatest accomplishment. He said they were family, and he didn’t let his family or Chicago down.
Steel gave Punk his own words and told him that it’s not how many times you get knocked down, it’s how many times you get back up. He then slapped Punk across the face and handed him the contract, and told him to sign the contract. Punk snapped out of it and grabbed the microphone. He said he was born with the cord around his neck because they’ve been trying to kill him since day one, but they haven’t found the man to do it yet, and Moxley isn’t that man.
Punk went into the crowd and said Chicago is where the weak are eaten alive. He said Moxley can’t break his bones or drink his blood, because we are Chicago. He then signed the contract and told Moxley he would see him on Sunday. Punk celebrated with the crowd…
They went backstage to a video promo between Jungle Boy and Christian with JR between them. Christian said he was going to embarrass him, and make him a has been at 25 years old. Jungle Boy said his relationship with Christian felt very familiar, and at one time he loved Christian, but he’s not sure if he ever loved him. He questioned whether he ever knew the real Christian. Christian replied that he never wanted to be his father figure, and that this was the real him, and the only reason he’s in AEW is to make money. JB said on Sunday that Christian wouldn’t be facing Jungle Boy, he would be facing a pissed off Jack Perry…
FTR and Wardlow made their entrances in the arena. The team of Wardlow facing Red Jones, Vic Durpi, and Silas Young…
3. Wardlow and “FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler vs. Red Jones, Silas Young, and Vic Dupri: The babyface team completely dominated the match. Red Jones made a tag to Vic Durpi, who was immediately caught in a Big Rig, and then powerbombed by Wardlow for the win.
Wardlow and “FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler defeated Red Jones, Vic Dupri, and Silas Young at 0:58
After the match, Excalibur was cut off by a commercial…[c]
My Take: I guess Punk lost in dominating fashion last week because he wanted to cut a very Chicago Centric Promo to fire himself up for the PPV? To be clear, both Punk and Ace Steel performed very well, though Steel did drop an accidental F-Bomb that will irritate the network. I’m just left wondering if they couldn’t have told a very similar story with Punk’s foot without giving away the match first, and then cutting a very regionally focused promo to try and sell the PPV.
Jon Moxley walked back to the ring and said if CM Punk wants to go out on his shield in Chicago, then he can have his wish. He told Punk if he thinks he’s got one more miracle left in you, he better find it fast because the minute that bell rings he’s going to take his head off. Moxley said he’s going to put on a display of pro wrestling violence the likes that CM Punk has never seen. He then claimed that he would show people the difference between a fake messiah and the real deal on Sunday…
Backstage, Evil Uno said he would take Preston Vance’s place in the Trios match on Sunday. Andrade walked up and offered Preston Vance a contract to work for him. Uno tried to intervene, but was beaten with one of Vance’s crutches for his trouble. Jose fired off a stun gun to keep Vance from making any sudden moves…
Dante Martin made his entrance, followed by Rush, Rey Fenix, and Wheeler Yuta…
4. Dante Martin vs. Wheeler Yuta vs. Rey Fenix vs. Rush in a four-way: I’m not even going to try and capture everything that happens in this match. Yuta and Rush squared off to start. Rush landed a powerslam on Yuta, but was quickly dumped from the ring by Martin. Fenix confronted Dante Martin, and many flips and reversals happened in rapid fashion. Fenix jumped through the top and second rope to dive on Rush on the floor. Yuta and Martin then followed with big dives of their own.
Martin tossed Rush into the ring, and then jumped right into a headbutt. Rush then dove on all three opponents at ringside, and then taunted the crowd…[c]
Rey Fenix got clipped in the head by a flying Dante Martin, who had been tossed by Rush in a release German Suplex. Dante drove Fenix into the mat with a chokeslam for a near fall. Fenix replied with a facebuster, and then a powerbomb for a near fall. Martin landed a Poison Rana on Fenix, but he landed right on the crown of his skull. Martin attempted a double springboard, but Yuta shoved him off the ropes.
Fenix dove on Rush out on the floor, and Yuta climbed to the top. He attempted a flying nothing on Dante Martin, who rolled out of the way. He and Martin tied up, and Yuta tied up Martin with a seatbelt package pin for the win.
Wheeler Yuta defeated Rush, Rey Fenix and Dante Martin at 8:31 in a four-way
After the match, Tony Schiavone spoke to Jon Silver and Alex Reynolds. They said if Uno and Ten can’t do it, they would be forced to compete at a disadvantage. Hangman Page walked up and offered his services, and they accepted. It will be Hangman and Dark Order vs. The Best Friends on Friday. Excalibur then ran through 2300 plugs in 40 seconds, including the full card for Zero Hour and the All Out PPV…[c]
My Take: A nice win for Yuta. I don’t think it makes him any more likely to win on Sunday, but at least it’s a win on the main show. Hangman getting added to the Dark Order trio after all makes me wonder why they didn’t just do it from the start. I liked the promo from Moxley calling out Punk as the false messiah.
Will Ospreay made his entrance with Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis). They were followed by The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega. Kenny’s entrance announcements were basically a round of insults against Will Ospreay. Excalibur said they would stay with this match until they had a winner. Don Callis joined on commentary.
5. Kenny Omega and “The Young Bucks” Nick and Matt Jackson (w/Brandon Cutler, Michael Nakazawa) vs. Will Ospreay and “Aussie Open” Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis in an AEW Trios Tournament semifinal match: Omega and Ospreay started the match. Ospreay landed a kick, but Omega replied with a shoulder tackle. They then traded some hard chops. All six men ended up in the ring, and The Bucks cleared Aussie Open to the floor. Omega was then clotheslined to the floor by Ospreay.
Nick Jackson took down Ospreay with a kick. The Bucks attempted dives to the floor, but got caught and smashed into Omega by Aussie Open. Ospreay then landed a twisting moonsault from the top and landed on Omega and The Bucks. The action spilled up the ramp and everybody continued to brawl…[c]
Back in the ring, Mark Davis landed chops and a clothesline to both members of the Young Bucks. He then body slammed both men at the same time, though not without a struggle. Fletcher tagged in and landed a kick to Matt Jackson. Kenny Omega had to break up a near fall. Aussie Open looked for their finisher Coriolis, but Matt was able to escape. Matt then face planted Osprey with a casadora and made a hot tag to Omega.
Kenny entered the match and landed a Kotaro Crusher on Davis for a two count. He then landed a snap dragon suplex on both Fletcher and Davis. He attempted to send Ospreay to the floor, but he reversed back into the ring. Omega landed a thrust kick, and then avoided a snapdragon suplex. He sent Kenny out to the floor, but Omega avoided his dive attempt and gave him a suplex on the floor.
Omega took to the top turnbuckle, but Aussie Open both met him on the top. They gave him a very delayed superplex from the top, and Nick Jackson had to break up the fall. Ospreay tore off Kenny’s compression shirt, revealing bandages on Omega’s stomach and shoulder. He then delivered a backbreaker for a two count…[c]
Ospreay and Aussie Open isolated Omega during the break. As the show returned Nick Jackson made a hot tag and cleaned house on the heels. He attempted a 450 on Ospreay, but he got the knees up. Ospreay performed a snapdragon suplex, which irritated Omega. He got in the ring to confront Ospreay, but he got a Liger Bomb for his trouble. Aussie Open attempted Coriolis again, but Nick Jackson escaped.
Omega and The Bucks landed a double superkick and V-Trigger combo on Fletcher, but Davis broke up the pinfall. Ospreay broke up a piledriver attempt with an Oscutter. Fletcher and Ospreay landed an elaborate spike piledriver on Matt Jackson, but he kicked out at 2.9. Omega and Nick Jackson recovered and sent Ospready and Davis to the floor. Fletcher was victim to a Superkick Party. Omega lined up for a V-Trigger, but was intercepted by an Ospreay flying knee.
Matt and Nick Jackson landed an Indytaker on Ospreay to clear him from the action. Kenny then landed a V-Trigger on Fletcher, followed by a One Winged Angel for the win…
Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks defeated Will Ospreay and Aussie Open at 18:59 to advance to the finals of the AEW Trios Titles tournament
After the match, Omega recovered on the mat and sold his injuries. He had cupping marks on the left side of upper back and shoulder. Ospreay looked frustrated on the entrance ramp. Omega and The Bucks posed to end the show.
My Take: A very exciting spotfest match, as you’d expect given the participants. They know this kind of match very well, and they deliver. The Omega and Ospreay feud seemed to get a lot of oxygen in this match, and I wonder if that means we may see it again later this year and maybe even at Wrestle Kingdom.
Overall, this was a solid show, but I wouldn’t call it a home run as a go home show. Moxley and Punk played their roles well, but I can’t say the way they got to this main event is better than just giving them a couple of week’s worth of mic time to tell a singular story. There’s a lot of matches on the PPV that have very thin builds, but I don’t doubt the show will deliver from an in-ring perspective.
Is it just me or is the upper deck completely empty
Couldn’t Ace Steele have just done his little speech before punk came out so we didn’t have to deal with Emo Punk at all. That was terrible (but Steele played his part quite well)
The upper deck was empty and the booking of nearly every segment was even worse that what you would usually imagine.
If a promotion wants to come across at being more sports aligned, and I know that I’ve brought this up before, then a returning wrestler like Kip Sabian should not be getting a title match at a PPV without even wrestling and winning any matches upon his return, and in fact he was losing more than winning prior to his time away.
“Hangman getting added to the Dark Order trio after all makes me wonder why they didn’t just do it from the start.”
It’s possible that doing so would have foreshadowed the finals a lot more with Page involved vs. his former running mates. Having them advance the first match without his involvement there was more doubt about the outcome.
The booking of AEW is so bad. I really wanted this promotion to succeed but it has no chance while it follows this philosophy. There is simply no way that this presentation will attract new/casual viewers, and every chance that the hardcore fans (the only type of fan AEW has) will gradually be driven away by this ADD nonsense.
Honestly I follow AEW Dynamite every single week but I couldn’t tell you the backstory of half the names above, nor even what many of them look like. It’s just so many names. I know who W Morrissey is, but I have no idea why he is suddenly in this promotion and no idea who all these people are that he’s beating up. I have heard of Ace Steel, but I wasn’t watching ROH 15 years ago so I have no idea how I should feel about him or why he’s suddenly a major player on this show. The list goes on.
I think it’s great booking with Mox and Punk. If the match between them hadn’t happened already and Mox loses to Punk at All Out, it doesn’t do much for him. Interim champ loses to the real champ. And Punk doesn’t gain as much either.
But here, now no matter what happens, Mox gains a lot by having destroyed Punk already. And Punk is now the underdog and his comeback victory would mean a lot, while Mox losing his AEW title in a grueling battle doesn’t take as much away from him. Punk has everything to gain now.
I think it’s a great story.