By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
AEW Dynamite Hits
MJF, The Hurt Syndicate, and Hangman Page: MJF pledging The Hurt Syndicate is one of funnest stories in pro wrestling. I have no idea where it’s going, which his half the fun. What happens if MJF gets three thumbs up? What happens if Bobby Lashley never budges? Here’s hoping they stick the landing either way. The latest MJF and Page verbal exchange was also entertaining.
“The Young Bucks” Matthew Jackson and Nicholas Jackson vs. Mike Bailey and Kevin Knight: A big ol’ crowd-pleasing spot-fest. The live crowd loved this match, and it was enjoyable to watch at home, too. A clean finish would have been nice, but Ricochet interfering and costing Knight the match should set up a match between the two.
“FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler, Stokely Hathaway, and The Rock-n-Roll Express: Telling Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson that the Midnight Express were the better tag team is a babyface move in my book. I’m kidding (but not really). I like the idea of adding Hathaway to the FTR act. FTR disrespecting and attacking Morton and Gibson drew strong heat. Harwood and Wheeler’s babyface run lost its charm, but the heel turn has helped get their mojo back.
Konosuke Takeshita and Josh Alexander vs. Will Ospreay and Brody King: A quality tag team match. The only thing working against it was the predictability of King taking the loss for his team. On the bright side, Alexander picked up a win after losing his AEW debut match last week.
Jamie Hayter vs. Kris Statlander in an Owen Hart Foundation tournament semifinal match: A soft Hit for a good match that concluded with a clean finish. Dynamite has been an improved product lately, but they still don’t do an effective job of making most of their television main events feel important. In this case, the match didn’t get a video package or promo time from either wrestler beforehand.
AEW Dynamite Misses
Opening segment: A minor Miss. It could have been worse. Master P and the No Limit Soldiers did nothing for me when they were in WCW all those years ago, so I rolled my eyes when P was advertised for Dynamite. Samoa Joe made it watchable by showing reverence for the rap legend and appearing to be genuinely happy to share the ring with him. But, man, did Master P’s punches look awful. Joe getting the better of Moxley continued the build to their AEW World Championship match. The look that Moxley gave Swerve when he talked about regaining the title was a nice touch, given that they could meet for the title at Double Or Nothing if Joe beats Moxley at Beach Break.
Mark Briscoe vs. Ricochet: A minor Miss. A quality match with a head-scratching win for Briscoe. It was a questionable move to have Ricochet lose again after his recent high-profile losses to Will Ospreay and Swerve Strickland. Ricochet maintained his heat after those losses, and hopefully, one more won’t hurt him, but the company is starting to push it.
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