And we’re back with another review of everyone’s favorite wrestling show: AEW Dynamite! Double or Nothing is right around the corner and I cannot wait to see how the final card formulates. It’s already shaping up to be one of the best cards in AEW’s portfolio.
But we must get there first. Dynamite was in Long Island this week, hometown of everyone’s favorite ‘Salt of the Earth, and it’s shaping up to be a fantastic show. But did the show live up to the card’s hype?
Let’s find out!
Owen Hart Tournament: Adam Cole vs. Dax Harwood
Our opening match was Adam Cole taking on Dax Harwood in the first match of the Owen Hart Tournament! If this match is any indication of how good the Owen Hart tournament is going to be, us fans are in for a real treat.
I’m happy AEW is treating the memory of Owen Hart so well. They brought in Martha Hart to kick off the festivities, which was nice to see. Maybe that’s why Bret Hart hasn’t been seen in awhile.
The match started with Adam Cole being his usual cocky self. He tried to get under Dax’s skin, to no avail. Cole finally took advantage by sending Dax, ribs first, into the ring post. The match story then revolved around Dax Harwood’s possible broken ribs.
Eventually Dax fought back after being down for awhile. They traded constant moves until Dax hit an absolutely horrendous piledriver. This is where the beautiful storytelling came back in. Dax locked in the Sharpshooter, but trying to hold Cole in place put too much stress on Dax’s ribs. He couldn’t hold the maneuver!
Dax took an unfortunate tumble outside the ring onto the floor. He was almost counted out from the pain, but fighting his way back into the ring allowed for Cole to lock in his own Sharpshooter. This caused the FTR member to tapout from the searing pain. Brilliant finish to this story. Dax losing to his idol’s finishing maneuver. Great stuff! What a phenomenal way to start this tournament.
4.5/5
Match of the Night
There was a quick video promo between Jeff Hardy and Darby Allin. These crazy idiots asked Tony Khan to waive all rules for their match tonight. Apparently they wanted to kill each other.
CM Punk vs. John Silver
Up next was an interesting bout between widely beloved CM Punk facing hometown boy John Silver. Hangman Adam Page was out on commentary to support Silver and watch Punk here. The best part about this whole match was how Punk treated the Long Island crowd. He cut his own music so the crowd couldn’t sing and continuously berated the crowd. Punk disliking the Long Island crowd because of his feud with MJF is fantastic stuff. The small details set AEW apart.
The match itself was fine. Punk spent most of the bout using his veteran wherewithal to keep the advantage until Silver inevitably cranked up the energy with his trademark furious offense. Silver proves he deserves much more screen time every second he’s on it.
It was only a matter of time, however, until Punk kicked into high gear to finish the match. We got the running knees and the dropkick, except he didn’t finish it with the Go To Sleep. He finished the match with a Buckshot Lariat, which Hangman did not take kindly to.
I liked this match. Nothing perfect here, but a good solid match to further the Punk and Hangman story.
3.25/5
Hangman runs down to the ring to confront him directly after the bell. Punk says him coming for the title is “Just Business.” Hangman responds beautifully with a middle finger. Great after match segment that added to the match.
Backstage promo immediately after with Jaime Hayter and Dr. Britt Baker. Tony Schiavone interjected a tiny quip about them fighting each other if they win their respective Owen matches, which they got all awkward about. Hayter and Britt breadcrumbs again?
Danhausen vs. Tony Nese
Up next we had a ‘match’ between Long Island’s own Tony Nese and the singles debuting Danhausen. Everyone that was excited to see Danhausen’s debut are going to have to wait. Tony Nese squashed him in thirty seconds. Mark Sterling distracted the Very Nice, Very Evil man, which allowed Nese to smash the running knee and pin Danhausen immediately. I’m not even reviewing this because there was nothing to review.
It was more of a segment to set up what happened next.
Mark Sterling and Tony Nese started gloating because they destroyed a fan favorite, but out came another fan favorite: HOOK. The cold hearted, handsome devil chased away Nese and officially united HOOKHausen! We’re getting them facing Nese and Sterling at Double or Nothing.
Contract Signing
Up next was the single greatest contract signing I’ve ever seen. Everything about this was perfect.
It all started with a freaking Dark Side of the Ring stylized video detailing how Wardlow and MJF got to where they are. This was so good because it really felt like the beginnings of an episode. And the segment only got better from here. Long Island received MJF like a god. This man is the biggest heel in the game in 99% of places, but he’s the biggest babyface ever in Long Island.
There was a Shawn Spears 10 chant callback, Wardlow was booed by the savage crowd, there was a Cody reference, and we finally got the stipulations for MJF to agree to his match with Wardlow. The only way Wardlow gets his match is by surviving ten lashes (like Cody) and going toe to toe with Shawn Spears in a steel cage, but with MJF as special guest referee. Cannot wait to see that.
Wardlow obviously proceeded to sign it, and then beat the crap out of the security and Spears. Mark Sterling tried to get involved until Wardlow powerbombed him through the table. That was PHENOMENAL.
As was that first hour. This episode flew by!
FTW Championship: Ricky Starks vs. Jungle Boy
The FTW Championship match was up next between Ricky Starks and Jungle Boy. I’m not exactly sure what the point of the FTW Championship is because AEW hasn’t really established that. We only get Taz saying it’s important to Team Taz and their “FTW” mentality. Doesn’t really explain why other people challenge for it, but whatever. This match was fantastic though. It was a high energy display of awesome moves and counters that had an unfortunate ending.
There wasn’t much story in this match. Both guys traded move after move after move with neither one gaining any sort of advantage. Ricky Starks kept attempting the Rochambeau, but Jungle Boy would escape every attempt. There was a brutal spear where I thought Jungle Boy was sawed in half, but that was kicked out of. Jungle Boy proceeded to lock in the Snare Trap, but that was escaped from.
Neither guy could gain any upper hand, so Ricky Starks decided to finish it some other way. He grabbed the FTW Championship to hit Jungle Boy with. This triggered Swerve Strickland to come save Jungle Boy, except the referee spent too much time kicking Swerve out of the match. This allowed Starks to blindside Jungle Boy with the Rochambeau for the victory.
There’s a lot going on here. This match was great, but it did not need that big of a distraction finish. Makes Jungle Boy look stupid.
3.75/5
You could tell the young man was pissed at being distracted, as he stood in the corner post match as everyone came to the ring. Jurassic Express came down to even the odds, which triggered Keith Lee to join Swerve. It looks like we’re getting a triple threat for the tag titles, which is interesting because there’s an odd tension between Jungle Boy and Christian Cage. Is there a title costing heel turn coming?
Jericho Appreciation Society Victory Speech
On a night with a bunch of awesome matches, I appreciate the quick, direct segment that this was. The Jericho Appreciation Society came to the ring to gloat about what they did to Eddie Kingston, Santana, and Ortiz. “Jericho 2:16 says I just burned your face,” was incredibly lame…
This segment took a total left turn, as Jon Moxley came down to the ring. Apparently he didn’t take kindly to Jericho’s antics against his friend. This is why I love AEW. They pay attention to the details. Of course it’s Moxley who comes to Kingston’s aid because of their history. Yes, Moxley is in his own stable now, but why would he stand by and watch his friend get literally burned and be okay with it?!
The full Blackpool Combat Club showed up, but Kingston, Santana, and Ortiz also popped up to fully outnumber the Jericho jerkoff club. This was perfect, but my favorite part was William Regal putting his hands on Jericho and hitting a short arm clothesline. I literally jumped out of my seat!
Everything about this was perfect.
Owen Hart Tournament: Toni Storm vs. Jaime Hayter
Up next was our first Women’s Owen Hart Tournament match between Toni Storm and Jaime Hayter. This match was fantastic from start to finish. It almost won Match of the Night for me! These ladies killed it.
This was a pure wrestling match. They traded moves and jockeyed for position, with neither one gaining any serious advantage. Hayter hit a vicious Snap Suplex at one point. The power that woman possesses is ridiculous.
They escalated the intensity by trading even bigger moves as Storm hit a Swinging DDT and Crossbody onto the floor, only to be Superplexed two minutes later. They begun countering each other, with Toni Storm barely escaping by hitting the Storm Zero out of nowhere for the big win to advance in the tournament. Great match!
4/5
This is the perfect display of what I want to see from the Owen Hart Tournament. Every match needs to be given time, with no real clue as to who is going to win. I picked Toni Storm to win the whole thing, but I could have seen an alley for a monster Jaime Hayter push. Especially with how awesome and strong she looked in this match. I hope she gets a big feud coming soon. With Britt Baker perhaps…?
Owen Hart Tournament: Darby Allin vs. Jeff Hardy
To close out the night, we got to watch two dudes literally attempt to break each other’s bodies. Our main event was an Owen Hart Tournament match between Darby Allin and Jeff Hardy, except they knew what everyone wanted to see. This caused them to ask Tony Khan to lift all rules and allow them to do whatever they wanted, which he allowed.
Not a huge fan of that for this tournament, but it’s not a big deal.
I don’t even know how to review this. It was insane. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s one you need to see to believe. Or if you’re like me, watch with one eye open behind a covered face because you’re afraid of what’s about to happen. I don’t know how these two dudes are walking after this.
The big spot of this match has been shared a hundred times by now. Jeff Hardy introduced a ginormous ladder, which Darby Allin took one look at and thought, “OH YES I LOVE PAIN,” and hit a swanton bomb onto Jeff, who was laying on a bed of chairs. Darby looked to be split in half by the spine of a chair. Darby is going to cripple himself at one point.
This was just nonstop insanity from start to finish, except the finish surprised me greatly. Darby Allin hits the Coffin Drop, but Jeff kicks out into a surprise pin and beats Darby Allin out of nowhere. I kind of like that Darby gets beat that way. That’s becoming a pattern!
4/5
Verdict
And that was Dynamite for this week! This episode is a Show of the Year contender. It really kicked into high gear immediately and never stopped. Usually the second hour lags behind after a hot start, but not this week. Even with my minute complaints, there was nothing that majorly took away from the show this week. I was really tempted to go the full five here because of how I loved this so much, but after taking a day to process, I shaved that off just a little. Still a show of the year contender!
4.75/5
Sooooo close to perfect.
What did you think of this episode of Dynamite? Let me know on Twitter!