By Will Pruett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@itswilltime)
We are so back (to having good shows from AEW), and this Dynamite was not just good, it was beautiful! This theater in Detroit was one of the best wrestling venues I have ever seen, and AEW shot this show specifically to enhance the building they were in. I’m happy to see a place like this over a generic basketball arena. And now, thoughts!
– Willow Nightingale’s AEW Women’s World Championship celebration was the best part of this show and my favorite wrestling segment of 2026. Willow’s emotion rang true throughout the entire segment, from being overwhelmed and starting to cry to being angry as Mercedes Moné interrupted her. This was the type of moment a true top babyface needs. Willow was completely relatable, likable, and inspiring. The fans in Detroit made this moment, along with Willow’s willingness to follow true emotion. This was the perfect segment to build Willow vs. Mercedes at All In.
– Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay’s verbal segment was more muddled than Willow and Mercedes. While it seems like Omega is playing the antagonist against Ospreay (evidenced by his attack on Ospreay at the pay-per-view and less-than-kind attitude here), Omega is not a clear-cut heel. Ospreay is attempting to play the white meat babyface fighting for his country after spending months trying to fit in with a heel group that suffocates people with plastic bags. It’s muddled, but this segment was clear. While it all went on a little bit longer than it needed to, Ospreay delivered the message he needs to harp on over and over – he is going to All In and will win – in a clear manner. This worked.
– The trickiest part of any major pay-per-view build is the weeks between the match being made official and the match happening. This is where verbal exchanges become obnoxiously repetitive, or wrestlers tear each other down so much that fans stop wanting to see them at all. With both of these major matches, AEW needs to be careful not to hurt what they’ve already built. You don’t want fans tiring of Ospreay before his crowning moment. You don’t want fans hearing Willow get torn down when she should be being built up. The next month will be difficult to pull off.
– Did Jon Moxley introduce a tournament of some sort for the Continental Championship outside of the Continental Classic randomly in a segment after the official runtime of AEW Dynamite? What a weird thing to do. Moxley does need a challenger or match or something to do at All In – aside from making Will Ospreay look sad and doubt himself at various points in the build. Moxley in a tournament or a gauntlet or some sort of fun setup for All In will be compelling. It would even be a nice excuse to end Moxley’s Continental Championship reign and free him up to chase Will Ospreay after All In.
– “Hangman” Adam Page returned to AEW (again) and interacted with other wrestlers this time! Page’s moment with Ospreay at the beginning of the show was interesting. It’s understandable why Ospreay would not trust Page, but this did not make Ospreay more likable. Page helping The Conglomeration after their Trios Championship loss was a good spot for him. Where does Page actually slot in at All In this year? Will there be a follow-up to his angles on this show? Will he ever drive his Rivian R1T (that matches my own) up to the building again?
– Andrade El Idolo vs. Jack Perry vs. Nick Wayne was a fun Triple Threat match to further establish Andrade as AEW National Champion. While the belt is beautiful, it does feel like a step down to see Andrade, who was in the main event scene with Kenny Omega just a few months ago, holding and defending the National Championship. There is more positional elasticity in AEW than in other promotions, but it would be nice to hear Andrade continuing to express his desire for the AEW Men’s World Championship.
– Brody King, Bandido, and Speedball Bailey all on a team in a match together? This booking is catering to me personally. I appreciate it. Aligning Speedball with Brody and Bandido prior to next week’s Arena Mexico show will help them get over with that crowd. Speedball vs. Fletcher next week will be great.
– The sit down promo between The Young Bucks and Adam Copeland and Christian Cage was great. All four men brought out the best in each other verbally. The style of this interview steered away from Copeland’s constant over-acting and played into his strengths. The Bucks are always more natural in this environment than in in-ring talking segments. Cage continues to be one of the best promo performers in AEW. I expect these teams to grow to truly dislike each other before All In and bring more intensity. This was a great opening for their feud.
– Maya World’s first appearance as TBS Champion was successful, but I really want to see her get more promo time. Even one minute of speaking in picture-in-picture during her matches would help her create a deeper connection with the fans. AEW has something with World, but they need to be careful not to fumble it by not letting her personality shine.
– The Demand winning the AEW Trios Championship from The Conglomeration was a fun move. Ricochet has continued to deliver verbally in this faction, and seeing the faction pickup title and support from The Lethal Swirl works for me. Does Toa Liona bleed in every match? Is his forehead okay?
That will wrap up this week’s thoughts! Tonight I’ll be watching and talking to myself about AEW Collision during my weekly audio review for Dot Net Members, so expect more rapid-fire thoughts from the Motor City then!
Will Pruett writes about wrestling and popular culture at prowrestling.net. To see his video content, subscribe to his YouTube channel. To contact him, check him out on Bluesky @itswilltime, leave a comment, or email him at itswilltime@gmail.com.
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