By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
AEW Dynamite Hits
Will Ospreay vs. Brian Cage: The show peaked with this opening match and the angle that followed. That says more about the subpar quality of the episode than it does about this match which was fine aside form falling into the usual territory of going needlessly long and being overly competitive. I’m not really sure why they went with the Kenny Omega injury clip only to have him run out as if nothing had happened such a short time later. But I like that they put more heat on Konosuke Takeshita and Kyle Fletcher heading into the tag team match at AEW Grand Slam Australia.
Ricochet vs. AR Fox: Swerve Strickland beat AR Fox last week, and Ricochet beat Fox this week. This was a fine way to build toward the Swerve vs. Ricochet match that headlines next week’s show. The golden scissors is right up there with Don Callis’s screwdriver on my worst weapons list, but I am enjoying Ricochet’s work as a heel.
AEW Dynamite Misses
Mercedes Mone vs. Yuka Sakazaki for the TBS Championship: AEW continues to do a piss poor job of making most of their television main event feel important. They went so long without mentioning this match that I honestly forgot what the main event was going to be. Perhaps they went light on the match hype because even Tony Khan knew deep down that this match had no business being in the main event slot. Sakazaki’s win in the four-way No. 1 contenders match on Collision was her first AEW match since September. Sakazaki is talented and charismatic, but she’s just not over with the AEW fans and no one took her as a serious threat to beat Mone.
Jeff Jarrett vs. Claudio Castagnoli: It took three members of the big bad Death Riders to beat 57 year-old Jarrett. I’m still left wondering why Jon Moxley’s character would interfere to cost Jarrett a title shot. This is the same Moxley who challenged and then defeated three top contenders in a four-way match at the Worlds End pay-per-view, but for some reason we’re supposed to believe he’s trying to avoid defending his title against Jarrett? Given how uninterested this live crowd seemed, one can’t help but wonder how many fans outside the state of Tennessee actually want to see Jarrett make good on his quest to win the AEW World Championship before he retires.
Jay White vs. Wheeler Yuta: On the same night that Moxley’s top henchman needed help to beat a man who qualifies for the senior’s discount at Denny’s, the Death Riders’ young boy went 50/50 with a wrestler the company supposedly want to get over as a legitimate threat to win the AEW World Championship.
Overall show: AEW followed up one of my favorite editions of Collision with a downright dull episode of Dynamite. One step forward, two steps back.
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