By Will Pruett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@itswilltime)
Three hours of Collision and Dynamite combined on this fine evening, but I only think about two hours at a time (plus an overrun). Here are ten thoughts on AEW Dynamite!
– Opening this show with Kofi and Austin Creed getting a crash course on Swerve Strickland’s many crimes cracked me up. AEW has a way of referencing the depth (and absurdity) of the Hangman and Swerve feud without disrespecting it, but also without promising to go to those violent places again. It’s fun! Creed and Kofi may have believed they were just getting a history lesson when it came to Hangman Page and Swerve, but more was to come.
– The Demand vs. The New Level and Swerve was a very fun and very long match to kick off this three-hour wrestling block. I didn’t expect this one to go almost 20 minutes in the Dynamite opening slot, but there we were. Ricochet and The Gates of Agony really mesh well as a trio and bring a lot to this revamped and reemphasized Trios Championship picture. Kofi and Creed continue to show that they came to AEW to work. They fit in with the in-ring style of AEW really well.
– Hangman Page wondering why Swerve now approaches him in the Trios picture was intriguing. Will AEW reopen this feud fully? We saw hints of the two of them face to face at All In. Will they find themselves reduced to their worst selves again after All Out? Swerve once again pointed out Hangman’s lack of real friends and, much like when he pointed out Hangman wearing old gear back in the day, this insult stuck. Will we see more developments than just a match between these teams at All Out? Could these six men be the basis for a Blood and Guts match in November?
– Will Ospreay and Jon Moxley delivered their final pitch for All Out to close out this show (well, the Dynamite portion of it). I’m of two minds about this segment: it was both very intense and not enough. Jon Moxley is the last great mountain for Ospreay to climb, the victory he needs to cement himself as champion. Moxley, however, barely seems to want the AEW Men’s World Championship. Sure, he’ll win the match if he has two, but there is no sense of desire for Moxley. Ospreay thanking Moxley to close out the build to this one really did not work for me. Save that for next week’s Dynamite when Ospreay has put Moxley behind him.
– “Speedball” Mike Bailey is the first person to join Will Ospreay’s new United Empire. I don’t hate this call. Speedball is a delightful pro wrestler, and their style matches up well with Ospreay’s. They were also lost a bit on the card without a partner and outside of a singles title picture. Speedball as the champ’s lil’ buddy will be good TV and keep Speedball involved. Ospreay and Bailey vs. Claudio Castagnoli and Gabe Kidd was a fine match to close out this show and give Moxley time to talk on commentary. It was more about the verbal exchange after the match than the match itself.
– Britt Baker did a terrible job on commentary on this show. She was bad a few weeks ago as well. She is counterproductive when given the chance to talk about other wrestlers. She seems to care more about getting herself over than her opponents and tries to tear them down. If you want to see a heel who does commentary well, look no further than Don Callis. He’s a heel manager constantly giving credit to the babyfaces around him, and he still has more heat than anyone else in AEW. Britt Baker should be better than this.
– Tommaso Ciampa never turned babyface, but he is now acting like one while pretending people wanted to see Ciampa vs. Kazuchika Okada in 2018. I lived in 2018 and actively wrote and talked about wrestling then. I don’t believe I ever considered that match as anything other than fodder that could close out a ROH/NJPW show. It’s not a dream match. It will be fun on Sunday. Ciampa is both overstating his own legacy here and confusing me with his character’s second or third turn since arriving in AEW. It’s not a good look.
– We’ve been told that the Con-chair-to maneuver puts people out of action for months. Why would Copeland and Christian hurt a poor security guard that way? Why do babyfaces in AEW constantly beat up security guards? Maybe the security guards just do not need to exist. Maybe I am thinking about this too much.
– I liked the segment between The Young Bucks, Copeland and Christian, and FTR. It was as intense as it needed to be and reminded people what they might see at All Out in their Ladder (don’t call it TLC) match. I truly believe being called the Dudley Boys in that TLC equation is one of the greatest insults a tag team can receive, so I am glad The Young Bucks agreed. No one has ever wanted to be a Dudley Boy, and no one should ever have to be one again.
– Thekla and Willow Nightingale could have used a little more face-to-face promo time on this show. I would have preferred something like they did months ago (going into Redemption) with Mick Foley to the approach the build to their match received here. Let these women truly talk and talk fans into watching them wrestle. They’re more than capable.
There you have it, pals! The last batch of thoughts from me before AEW All Out this weekend!
Will Pruett writes about wrestling and popular culture at prowrestling.net. To see his video content, subscribe to his YouTube channel. To contact Will, check him out on Bluesky @itswilltime, leave a comment, or email him at itswilltime@gmail.com.
