By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
AEW Dynamite Hits
Kenny Omega vs. Swerve Strickland: Another strong match. I preferred their first bout, though it may be partly because this match’s outcome felt predictable. Swerve beat Omega in the first match, and the idea of babyface Omega challenging MJF for the AEW World Championship at AEW Dynasty in Canada seemed far more likely than a Swerve winning to set up a heel vs. heel match. The story of Omega putting his EVP title on the line in exchange for Swerve putting up his No. 1 contender status was undercooked. Swerve never even spoke about what he would do as an EVP, so the stipulation felt hollow.
MJF and Kenny Omega: MJF gloating that he’s the reason Hangman Page “can never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever be world champion again” was hilarious. The follow-up line about how Page “did not put up much of a fight” during their 46-minute Texas Death Match war was another gem. MJF’s insult comedy has drawn cheers in the past, but that’s not the case right now. As entertaining as his promo was, 99 percent of the fans booed him. Omega was nowhere near as smooth as MJF, but few wrestlers are. The important thing is that the fans were with Omega and seemed genuinely interested in seeing him challenge for the AEW World Championship at Dynasty.
Darby Allin vs. Rush in a no-countout match: This match felt out of place as a main event because the company just threw it out there with no build. There was nothing at stake, and no storyline issues between them. And I can accept that for some television matches, but a show’s main event should have a purpose beyond two wrestlers filling the time with a good match. Now here’s where I contradict myself by saying that the match landed in the Hit section because it was an entertaining match in person. I may have put this in the Miss section had I only watched the show at home, but it worked for me, and seemingly the vast majority of the live crowd. As much as I wish Allin would tone things down for his own good, I’d be lying if I said the bumps that he took in this match weren’t impressive. Granted, I think those same bumps would mean so much more if he saved them for key times, but I digress. What surprised me most was how much more enjoyable Rush was in person. I find a lot of Rush’s matches too formulaic when I see them on television, but his showboating style got a strong reaction from the live crowd. One of my favorite spots of the night was Rush striking the Tranquillo pose, only to have Darby shoot right up and attack him while he was lying on the mat. The Callis Family attacking Darby after the match caught me by surprise. It was interesting that Andrade El Idolo was still annoyed by Callis taking money from MJF in exchange for roughing up Darby. Kyle Fletcher also showed no interest in working with MJF, so I’m curious to see where this is going. The live crowd would have popped big had Andrade or even Rush saved Allin. Rather, Brody King, Dante Martin, and Darius Martin made the save after the show went off the air. They also took a lap around ringside to greet fans and send them home happy.
Jon Moxley, Daniel Garcia, and Marina Shafir vs. Darius Martin, Dante Martin, and Zayda Steel: This probably worked better for the live crowd because the Martins are Minnesota natives. Even so, this was a good mixed tag match. Steel is still a work in progress, but this was one of her better in-ring performances.
Mike Bailey vs. Rocky Romero: There’s nothing wrong with a brief showcase match. I was happy that Bailey was added to the card, as I believe this was my first time seeing him in person. I watched the show on television today and was disappointed by Excalibur simply saying “the knees” when Bailey performed his Ultima Weapon finisher. Taz was talking, which might have thrown off Excalibur’s call. Speaking of Taz, I was surprised to see him at the broadcast table. It was good to hear him, Taz, and Tony Schiavone together again when I watched the television show today.
AEW Dynamite Misses
Thekla vs. Mina Shirakawa for the AEW Women’s Championship: A minor Miss for a lousy finish. The referee had to grab the belt Thekla used as a weapon, turn his back to the action while walking to a corner of the ring, and drone on about God knows what for what felt like an eternity while he spoke to the security guard he gave the belt to. This went on so long that I stopped watching the wrestlers and started pondering whether the referee was walking the security guard through the history of belts dating back to the Bronze Age. It’s a shame because I enjoyed the majority of the match, and the live crowd was invested. The presentation of this match was also weak. We didn’t hear from either wrestler, and the company didn’t do anything to make it stand out from the other matches. Even something as simple as having Justin Roberts deliver introductions once both wrestlers were in the ring would have helped. If you want championship matches to feel important, you need to put the work in to make them stand out.
David Finlay and Clark Connors vs. Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong: It wasn’t a bad match. The crowd was into the babyfaces, but the crowd was as quiet as they were all night when Finlay and Connors made their entrance. The Dogs have lost more than they’ve won since arriving in AEW, so the fans had no reason to care. Hopefully, winning this match is the start of something. They need more wins, so giving Cassidy and Strong their win right back would be counterproductive.
(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.)
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