Powell’s AEW Dynamite Hit List: Thoughts on MJF’s return and adding himself to the AEW World Championship match at Worlds End, and a promo that seemed to suggest a big development is coming soon

By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)

Check out my free audio review of AEW Holiday Bash on this week’s Pro Wrestling Boom podcast.

AEW Holiday Bash Hits

MJF returns: The contract signing felt fairly routine after Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland, and Hangman Page delivered their promos and signed off on the match. But then the lights went out, and the fun started when MJF’s entrance theme played. It seemed like there was a chance that MJF would pop up on this show due to the Dynamite Diamond Battle Royale taking place, but it was so much better to have him return and insert himself into the AEW World Championship match at Worlds End. MJF’s promo was strong, and he did a nice job of tearing into all three of his Worlds End opponents. While it was a little awkward that Joe, Swerve, and Page mostly just stood there and took the verbal beating, MJF did an effective job of laying out issues and history with all three men. I was looking forward to the initial three-way between Joe, Swerve, and Page, but MJF is a welcome addition that makes the AEW World Championship match even more interesting.

Pac vs. Kyle Fletcher in a Continental Classic tournament Gold League match: The only tournament match that felt like it could have gone either way. In fact, I was a bit surprised to see Fletcher take the loss and now be at risk of failing to reach the semifinal round. He’s currently locked in a four-way tie with Pac, Kazuchika Okada, and Mike Bailey, but they all have two matches remaining, while he’s down to one. I’m still not a fan of some of the over-the-top moves that are only good for near falls in too many Pac matches, which is a shame because I really enjoy watching him perform aside from that.

Jon Moxley vs. Roderick Strong in a Continental Classic tournament Blue League match: Under different circumstances, I wouldn’t have ruled out the possibility of Moxley putting over Strong. But once the broadcast team made it clear that it was essentially do or die for both wrestlers, I didn’t think there was any chance of Moxley losing. That said, I appreciated the discussion about the points and the various scenarios as opposed to the usual focus on the winner earning three points. Even more interesting than the match was Moxley delivering what came off like a babyface promo. I came away suspecting that the angle that will result in Moxley being ousted from The Death Riders is imminent.

Kenny Omega and “The Young Bucks” Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson vs. Kazuchika Okada, Konosuke Takeshita, and Hechicero in a trios match for $1 million: Give it up with the ridiculous cash prize nonsense. No one believes the prize money is real, so it adds nothing to the matches and makes AEW look silly. If you can put that aside, this was a good match that saw the Bucks get the strongest reactions they’ve had from a live crowd in a long time. You had to know that Hechicero was in the match to take the loss. The post-match friction between Okada and Takeshita felt a little repetitive, so hopefully the payoff is coming soon.

FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler vs. Juice Robinson and Austin Gunn for the AEW Tag Team Titles: A good show-closing tag team title match aside from Austin performing a couple of the worst-looking Fameassers I’ve ever seen. The near fall with the referee making the three count while Wheeler put Harwood’s foot over the bottom rope was well done. It says a lot that the live crowd was invested enough to chant “bullshit” during the final match of a marathon show.

Willow Nightingale, Harley Cameron, Toni Storm, and Mina Shirakawa vs. Mercedes Mone, Athena, Marina Shafir, and Megan Bayne in an eight-woman tag match: A soft Hit for a segment that set up the AEW Women’s Tag Team Title match for World’s End by having Mone pin Willow. Athena would have benefited more from getting the pin, but perhaps the idea was to showcase Mone’s selfishness since she got the pin only after Athena hit Willow with her finisher.

Jamie Hayter vs. Isla Dawn: An in the middle for a showcase win for Hayter. The post-match brawl concluded with a clunky spot, but it was fun to see Hayter shrug her shoulders after she accidentally put Kris Statlander down with a Hayterade clothesline. The more tension they can build between Statlander and Hayter, the better heading into their AEW Women’s Championship match at Worlds End.

AEW Holiday Bash Misses

The Dynamite Diamond Ring Battle Royale: Why is the ring still a thing? MJF absurdly won it six times. Just let him keep the damn thing and move on. This weak match concluded with the always anticlimactic ending of having two winners to set up a throwaway bout for the silly trinket next week. Sure, Bandido and Ricochet will have a good match, but they could have just as easily been booked to meet for the equally worthless prize known as the AEW National Championship. Does the ring actually find a new home, or does MJF somehow maintain possession of it even though he’s not scheduled to face the winner? I wish I cared.

Orange Cassidy vs. Mascara Dorada in a Continental Classic tournament Blue League match: While I thought the match was solid, a reader named “mcigo” attended the show and did a nice job of summing up the issues with it in our comments section: “It just didn’t really feel much like a fight. It was athletically impressive, and they worked hard, but it was gymnastics rather than a fight, so for that reason I think it fell a bit flat.” It also didn’t help that while mathematically alive, neither man has felt like a significant factor in the points race. To close on a positive note, it was nice to see Cassidy stop during his entrance to acknowledge the young fan who was dressed like him. A simple gesture like that can go a long way toward earning a lifelong fan of the wrestler, the company, and the entire business.

(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time dating back to 1997. He hosts a weekly podcast, Pro Wrestling Boom, and also appears regularly on the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Podcast. Reach him via email at dotnetjason@gmail.com and on social media via @prowrestlingnet.bsky.social or x.com/prowrestlingnet. For his full bio and information on this website, click here.)