By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
AEW Dynamite Hits
Will Ospreay and Kyle Fletcher face-to-face meeting: It was ambitious of Ospreay and Fletcher to go with such a lengthy verbal exchange, but they pulled it off nicely. Ospreay was the good babyface who believed that his old friend still had love for him deep down, while Fletcher was filled with enough jealousy and rage to make Sith Lord blush. No one watches an AEW television show expecting to see a 20-minute talking segment, and yet this is just what the Full Gear main event needed. I didn’t think AEW did nearly enough before the go-home show to make Ospreay vs. Fletcher feel like a major showdown match. Fortunately, they saved it with this verbal segment by focusing on the relationship between the former friends and just how personal this rivalry is. It would be foolish to expect AEW to feature lengthy talking segments regularly, but it’s good to know that Tony Khan will allot the time if the situation calls for it.
Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mike Bailey for the AEW National Championship: A very good match. There was no reason to think Bailey would win, but he got the live crowd to buy into the possibility via his always impressive offense. The post-match angle with Ilja Dragunov confronting Ciampa was simple and effective. Dragunov didn’t say a word. He merely pointed to the match graphic showing that he will challenge Ciampa for the title at Full Gear, which is a terrific final addition to the pay-per-view main card.
“Motor City Machine Guns” Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin vs. “FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler in the fifth and final match of the best-of-five series: An enjoyable ending to a series that lived up to my lofty expectations. Normally, I’m cool with AEW teasing fans that a match may end in a draw only for it to conclude seconds before the time limit. In this case, 20 minutes doesn’t seem like enough time for a deciding match, and someone needs to explain why the series opening match lasted 26 minutes. Putting that aside, it was a treat to see these teams working together. AEW’s tag team division has typically looked great on paper, yet hasn’t lived up to its potential. The recent additions of the Guns and New Level give me hope that the division will become a higher priority.
AEW Women’s Champion Mercedes Mone and Jay White vs. Marina Shafir and AEW Continental Champion Jon Moxley in a mixed tag match: An entertaining match thanks mostly to Mone and Shafir. Moxley and White are great, but the Death Riders vs. The Cut feud isn’t doing much for me. In fact, a strong case could be made that Moxley and White would be better off without their stablemates, though I would vote to extend the Moxley and Shafir alliance. My first thought when Shafir forced Mone to submit to the Brutalizer is that it means Mone is retaining at Full Gear. And while I still lean in that direction, they may be conditioning fans to recognize Pac’s submission hold as a finisher for Shafir, so that it gets the best possible crowd reaction if she uses it to win the championship on Saturday.
Bandido and Brody King vs. Kofi and Austin Creed: A spirited brawl that didn’t last long, yet started with a fast pace and never let up. I enjoyed the story of Swerve Strickland demanding that the AEW Trios Title match at Full Gear be fought under Texas Death Match rules, and making it happen despite no one else involved wanting anything to do with that stipulation initially. They could have done a little more to establish why Kofi and Creed got on board, but their aggressiveness during the match showed that their characters are ready for war.
AEW Dynamite Misses
Show length: I’m only including the Dynamite matches in the Hit List. Most of the Collision matches were fine, but I spent most of that show wishing it would end. Three hours is too long for any pro wrestling television show (or two shows combined in this case). I’m starting to dread the holiday season every year now that I know it means the insufferable three-hour SmackDowns are right around the corner. Worse yet, when AEW advertises a three-hour block, you know Tony Khan will still have a long overrun. Three hours and 37 minutes. Why? Hell, why can’t AEW skip an hour of Collision during pay-per-view weeks? Yeah, I get that they have a contract that calls for two hours of Collision each week, but the network should call it a wash since AEW gives them long overruns nearly every week. To close on a semi-positive note, it was a good call to have the ROH Tag Team Title match on late in the show. Granted, I care about ROH these days as much as I care about the NBA’s in-season tournament, but Mistico brought the tired crowd to life.
Orange Cassidy vs. David Finlay: The match was fine, but the live crowd’s quiet reaction during Finlay’s entrance spoke volumes. If AEW wants to continue giving him a lot of television time, they need to put in the work to make fans care about his character. He wrestled for New Japan, and his father is Fit Finlay. What else have we actually learned about David from AEW television?
(Jason Powell, founder and editor of ProWrestling.net, has covered pro wrestling full-time since 1997. He hosts the weekly podcast, Pro Wrestling Boom, and 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.)
