By Jake Barnett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@barnettjake)
AEW Dynamite (Episode 161)
Norfolk, Virginia at Chartway Arena
Aired live October 26, 2022 on TBS
[Hour One] Excalibur was joined by Taz and Tony Schiavone on commentary. They said we’d hear from MJF, and Jon Moxley would defend his championship against Penta later in the show. Out for the first match was Chris Jericho with the Jericho Appreciation Society. Once Jericho and Garcia were in the ring, Wheeler Yuta and Claudio Castagnoli made their entrance. William Regal joined on commentary.
1. Chris Jericho and Daniel Garcia vs. Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta: Claudio started the match, and immediately launched an assault on Chris Jericho. Garcia tagged in to give Jericho some air, and Claudio dragged him to the corner and landed some uppercuts. Yuta tagged in and landed some forearms and chops. Garcia slowed down Yuta with a headbutt and landed some strikes of his own.
Yuta and Claudio dominated Garcia and Jericho in a one-sided fashion, enough that Jake Hager jumped on the apron to cause a distraction. This didn’t deter them much, and they resumed isolating Daniel Garcia with strikes and holds. Garcia broke free of Claudio when he attempted a Giant Swing and tagged to Jericho. They resumed trading blows, and Hager offered another distraction. That allowed Jericho to land a springboard dropkick while Claudio was on the apron…[c]
Claudio was isolated during the break. Daniel Garcia applied a rear chin lock as the show returned, and Claudio powered his way up to his feet and manipulated Garcia into position for a vertical suplex. Jericho tagged in and knocked Yuta from the apron. He then attempted a Walls of Jericho, but Claudio avoided it and landed a vaulted uppercut. Claudio stumbled to his feet and made the tag to Yuta.
Claudio helped Yuta with an assisted Tornado DDT on Jericho. He then attempted a Ricola Bomb, but Jericho escaped and landed a codebreaker. Yuta slammed Jericho and then dove on Garcia on the floor. Claudio then powerbombed Jericho, and set up for a Giant Swing. Garcia jumped on Claudio’s back, and he performed a Giant Swing/Airplane Spin combo on both men.
Claudio then went on a streak of destroying everybody on the outside of the ring. He then returned to the ring and landed a Neutralizer on Jericho and scored the win.
Claudio Castagonli and Wheeler Yuta defeated Chris Jericho and Daniel Garcia at 11:03
After the match, Claudio and Wheeler celebrated while Jericho and Garcia recovered with the JAS…
Backstage, Renee Paquette asked Bryan Danielson about recent events. He expressed frustration at his recent losses and the betrayal of Daniel Garcia. He spoke about Wheeler Yuta talking back to him, and then Wheeler walked up and told him he was happy that he was finally angry. Yuta said he was a grown ass man, not a child, and if Bryan had a problem they could sort it out like men. Claudio intervened and said once Danielson was done with his match with Guevara, they would all sit down and sort it out…
My Take: A solid opening match, but the Blackpool Combat Club drama is a little wonky. Why portray them like a faction that doesn’t strategize and communicate with each other? Are we as viewers supposed to believe that Danielson couldn’t figure out all of Chris Jericho’s schemes over the past few months, but Claudio and Yuta solved that riddle in about 10 minutes?
There was a vignette during the commercial break that showed The Elite in various still photos, that they were subsequently erased from…
Backstage, Jericho Appreciation Society was ticked off. Jericho said Claudio cheated because there was a bat in the ring when he won the match. Garcia called them the Blackpool Cheaters Club. Jericho made an open challenge for next week against any former ROH Champion. Sammy Guevara then piped up and said he would put on a show like no one has ever seen later on, and he would beat Bryan Danielson’s ass again…
In the arena, Swerve in our Glory made their entrance, followed by FTR. Once everyone was in the ring, The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn walked out on stage and sat in chairs at the top of the stage…
2. “FTR” Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood” vs. “Swerve in our Glory” Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland” to become No. 1 contenders to the AEW Tag Titles: Swerve and Cash started the match for their respective teams. There was a big “scissor me daddy” chant as the match started. Strickland used his speed to gain an early advantage and land an arm drag. The Gunn Club was shown in the crowd in the front row. Cash returned fire with a fireman’s carry, and then made a tag to Dax. He entered the match landed a short leg drop, followed by an arm ringer.
Swerve landed a punch to the gut and made a tag to Keith Lee. FTR attempted a Big Rig on Lee, but Harwood couldn’t pick him up. Lee fired back with a leapfrog and a flying cross body that took out both Cash and Dax…[c]
Lee and Swerve continued the assault on Cash Wheeler. They cut off the ring and made frequent tags. Cash avoided a Keith Lee splash in the corner, and then scrambled for a tag to Dax. He entered and landed a series of hard chops on Swerve. Lee tried to break up the chops, but was sent out of the ring. Swerve and Harwood swapped roll up attempts for two count. Dax got a close near fall on a cross body reversal.
Cash tagged back in and landed a dragon suplex with a bridge for a close near fall. Both men then traded uppercuts. Lee tagged himself and landed a rolling elbow and kick combo on Wheeler. They then landed an assisted powerbomb on Wheeler, but he was able to kick out for a good near fall. They set up for the Swerve Stomp, but Wheeler used a head scissors to escape. Harwood took a couple of attempts to land a sit out powerbomb on Swerve. Lee then landed a headbutt on Wheeler and fell on top of him for a near fall.
Lee sat on the top rope and started to pull Wheeler up there with him. Harwood tagged himself in and barely pulled Lee into the ring with a Superplex. Wheeler attempted to land a splash to complete the Power Plex, but Lee was out of position and he didn’t quite catch it. After a series of reversals, FTR landed a Big Rig on Keith Lee. Harwood made the cover, but Swerve pulled him out of the ring.
On the outside, The Gunns held Cash Wheeler against the barricade so he couldn’t help his partner. Swerve then landed a low blow on Harwood, and Lee landed his Big Bang finisher for the win.
Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland defeated Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood at 14:34 to become No. 1 contenders to the AEW Tag Titles.
After the match, The Gunns tried to jump FTR in the ring, but the Acclaimed made the save…
Backstage, Renee Paquette tried to interview Saraya, but Britt Baker walked up and it started a shouting match. Renee separated them and told them if they wanted to talk, they would do it properly…[c]
My Take: Renee already subverting the backstage interruption segments. I like it. The tag match was a lot of fun but you could see the interference coming from orbit. I was hoping it would be more clever, but it was fairly straightforward, complete with a ref having to quickly turn his back to avoid seeing the low blow.
Renee Paquette stood on the stage, and welcomed MJF out. He schmoozed with the crowd for a bit, and asked if there were any Devil worshippers in the house. Renee asked him how he felt heading into a monumental match against Jon Moxley. He did a Jon Moxley impression that ended with Moxley threatening to gargle his piss. He then called Moxley mid, and then called William Regal and flea ridden rat.
MJF said Regal got under his skin when he inferred that MJF couldn’t beat Moxley without help or his Dynamite Diamond Ring. He then made a promise that when he defeats Jon Moxley at Full Gear, he wouldn’t need his ring. MJF then said all he needs to defeat Moxley is a grudge, and he’s mashed all of his into a chip and placed it on his shoulder. He said he would take off that chip and shove it down Regal and Moxley’s throats at Full Gear. MJF started to say he’s a generation talent, but…
Stokely Hathaway walked out on stage. Stokely said he knew he wanted Moxley at 100%, but…MJF slapped the mic out of his hand. He then told Stokely that he wasn’t to touch Moxley or he would be fired. MJF said he needed Moxley at 100% so Regal and his weird fanboys have no excuses. He then performed his catchphrase and walked off…
The Kingdom, Wardlow and Samoa Joe had a video package. If you were curious, Matt Taven called Wardlow a Melvin. Wardlow said he would make Taven his next victim on Friday with a Powerbomb symphony…
In the arena, Sammy Guevara made his entrance with Tay Melo. They made out on stage. He was followed by Bryan Danielson.
3. Bryan Danielson vs. Sammy Guevara: The match started with a knee strike from Guevara. He then landed a series of strikes in the corner, and then an Enziguri. He then landed a double springboard cutter for a near fall.
[Hour Two] Danielson recovered and locked in a Romero Special. He then landed a series of uppercuts and chops in the corner. Both men traded hard strikes until Bryan dropped Guevara with a flurry. Bryan attempted to apply an armbar, but Guevara was able to scramble to the ropes. Bryan went for a juji gatame, but Guevara avoided it. Danielson landed a series of palm strikes, and then a baseball slide. Bryan attempted a diving knee, but Guevara landed a knee strike counter. He then landed a springboard moonsault onto Danielson at ringside…[c]
My Take: MJF’s promo was well delivered, but I’m still not sold on him leaning so hard into the cheers. Obviously there’s a strategy at play, so I’ll withhold judgment, but I think MJF is a great heel. The era of the anti-hero tweener character would make more sense if MJF was still in open conflict with Tony Khan and AEW, but that hasn’t been mentioned since his return.
Danielson absorbed heavy kicks from Guevara, and it just fired him up. He landed a series of palm strikes and hard kicks to the chest. He then landed a heavy running elbow strike, and sent Guevara out to the floor. Bryan followed with a suicide dive, and then tossed Sammy back into the ring. He went up top and landed a shotgun dropkick, and fired up for the crowd.
Sammy returned fire with a Spanish Fly, and then went up to the top rope. Bryan shoved him off the ropes. He set up for a back suplex from the top, but Sammy flipped out of it. Bryan avoided a series of moonsaults and splashes from Geuvara, and then applied the Lebell Lock. Guevara reached the ropes, and Bryan went up top. Sammy leapt to the top and met him up there with a Spanish Fly for a near fall.
He then landed heavy blows on Bryan, and bit him on the forehead. Sammy then went for the GTH, but Bryan avoided it and landed a poison rana. Bryan then landed a Busaiku Knee, and finally applied a Triangle Choke and got the win.
Bryan Danielson defeated Sammy Guevara at 15:09
After the match, Excalibur tossed backstage to Rey Fenix and Alex Abrahantes, who were with Renee Paquette. They talked about Penta defeating Jon Moxley to be a double champ, and Fenix possibly becoming All-Atlantic Champion. They were interrupted by Christian and Luchasaurus, who said that Luchasaurus deserved a shot at the All-Atlantic Championship. Orange Cassidy walked into frame and apparently booked a triple threat title match for next week’s show…[c]
My Take: Danielson and Guevara was a good TV match, but I was hoping we’d see more of Bryan being a buzzsaw in this situation. He’s taken quite a few losses lately, and Yuta called him out for being too stupid to see what Jericho and Garcia were up to. It was good to see him get a win, but I’m not sure Guevara needed to be protected so much in this instance.
Jamie Hayter made her entrance with Rebel and Britt Baker. She was ten followed by Riho…
My Take: Could this be the singles match that results in another tag match between Toni Storm and a partner vs. Baker and Hayter? Only one way to find out.
4. Riho vs. Jamie Hayter (w/Britt Baker, Rebel): Riho got a bit spun around early on in the match, but they got it back together quickly. Riho landed a head scissors, but Baker grabbed her legs as she hit the ropes a moment later. Hayter got dumped to the floor by a low bridge from Riho. She then climbed to the top and splashed Hayter on the floor. She recovered and drove Riho into the ring apron. Hayter then took control and grounded Riho in the ring…[c]
There were some sloppy reversals when the show returned. Hayter finally powered Riho into position, and she reversed into a Code Red of sorts. She then landed a double stomp. Riho landed a Northern Light’s suplex for a two count. Riho went up top for a cross body, but Hayter rolled through and landed a brainbuster for a close near fall.
Hayter picked up Riho, and after another awkward reversal Riho hit the ground awkwardly. Riho backed herself into the corner, and Britt Baker offered another distraction. Hayter popped Riho into the air, but Riho landed on her back and pulled her into a Code Red for a near fall. She went up top for a double stomp, but Hayter avoided it and landed a uranage backbreaker.
Riho rolled up Hayter for a two count, but Hayter recovered and landed a ripcord lariat. She then covered and got the win.
Jamie Hayter defeated Riho at 10:20
After the match, Hayter celebrated with Baker and Rebel. Toni Storm walked out onto the stage and held up her Interim AEW Women’s Championship…
Backstage, Renee Paquette interviewed Eddie Kingston. She said his friends are concerned about him and asked him how he’s doing. He blew off the question and smiled even though you could tell he was boiling mad. Eddie changed the subject and asked about Moxley’s match. He said it’s going to be tough because Penta is mucho money, but he thinks Johnny has it. Eddie told everybody else to leave him alone…
Darby Allin had a vignette where he detailed why Sting hasn’t been around for a while. He said he told Sting that he wasn’t happy and he wanted to crawl into a hole and be by himself. Sting told him he couldn’t do that because he’s Darby Allin, the guy who brought him out of retirement. Darby then said he understood what Sting meant, and challenged Jay Lethal’s friend to show up on Dynamite next week and tell him what his biggest weakness is to his face. Allin said he already knows his biggest weakness, it’s him, and he’s been walking on this ice all his life…
In a separate video, Lethal and Dutt accepted, and told Allin he should be careful what he asks for…[c]
My Take: A bit of a clunker between Hayter and Riho. They worked hard, but seemed like they weren’t on the same page at different points. It was good to see Hayter get the win, and I hope they finally tell a story with her where she moves out on her own.
Penta made his entrance first for the main event with Alex Abrahantes, followed by Jon Moxley.
5. Jon Moxley vs. Penta El Zero Miedo for the AEW World Championship: A big slap and chop fight broke out early in the match. Both men avoided some early attempts at signature moves. Penta flashed his Zero Miedo sign to Moxley, who flipped him double birds. Penta sent Moxley to the floor, and then dove on him with a flip over the top rope…[c]
Moxley landed an overhead suplex on Penta that sent him into the turnbuckles. He then delivered mounted punches in the corner, and tore a bit at Penta’s mask. Both men hit the ropes, and Penta landed a slingblade for a two count. He then attempted a package piledriver, but Moxley escaped and landed a cutter. Mox followed up with a piledriver for a near fall.
Moxley landed some elbows, and then went for a bulldog choke. Penta released the clasp on his mask to escape the submission. Both men attempted submissions, but failed. Penta finally executed the arm breaker on Moxley, but got a near fall. Both men rolled out onto the apron and brawled. Penta set up for a leaping Canadian Destroyer using the ring steps, but Moxley avoided it and landed a DDT on the steps.
Moxley lined up and landed the King King Lariat. He then covered for a near fall. Moxley set Penta on the top rope and set up for a Superplex. Penta knocked Moxley down and landed a double stop, followed by a Package Piledriver for a very close near fall. Moxley recovered and caught Penta with a Paradigm Shift, followed by a Death Rider for the win.
Jon Moxley defeated Penta El Zero Miedo at 13:03 to retain the AEW World Championship
After the match, “The Firm” W Morrissey, Ethan Page, Lee Moriarty, Austin Gunn, and Colten Gunn ran down to the ring and attacked Jon Moxley. Stokely Hathaway followed shortly thereafter. The Blackpool Combat Club was shown locked in their personal room backstage. Moxley managed to land a few shots on the Gunn Club and Moriarty, but was put down by Morrissey and Page.
MJF teased coming to the ring, and then walked backstage for a second. He then popped back out and walked to the ring. He told Stokely Hathaway he was fired, and Stokely smiled. His crew then beat down MJF. Ethan Page picked him up and landed an Ego’s Edge, and then Morrissey tossed him out onto the ramp. Morrissey picked up MJF and drove him through the timekeeper’s table at ringside with a chokeslam. The Firm stood tall to close the show.
My Take: I enjoyed Moxley vs. Penta, but it suffered from the lack of any real chance of Penta playing spoiler. The Firm has felt so cold on TV lately that it feels like an unnecessary element to add to such a promising title feud. I hope to be proven wrong, but I was really hoping we’d get a strong stretch of MJF and Moxley building their match one on one instead of having to deal with this distraction. Are we really going to get a “CAN THEY COEXIST” tag match in AEW, after fans have mercilessly mocked it as a WWE trope online for years now?
A couple of good moments, but AEW has now moved past bad wrestling TV into just plain bad TV most weeks. Still some highlights from time to time, and every now and then they can get a few good shows off in a row, but it never sticks.
As a promotion, AEW reminds me of a show like Jericho (not a dig at Chris). They had a great gimmick, and the early episodes were extremely interesting and fresh, but it didn’t take long for most people to realize that the creative plan really didn’t extend beyond the initial concept and nobody could figure out a long term story that was compelling enough to keep the audience.
I like that Moxley is a fighting champion, but when MJF spends 20 minutes talking about their upcoming title match at the big event… only for Mox to defend said title later in the show… are viewers supposed to believe he’d lose?
Also, if everyone gets a title shot, those big money matches – and the belt – lose their luster.
You don’t have to be MIA, like Reigns, but you have to protect the main male/female championships somewhat. Build to a singular match instead of defending it every episode. Tonight should have been non-title, if Mox wanrs to fight.
Clearly this is a swerve with MJF right??