Hey, you guys! Guess what day it is? It’s Wednesday and you know what that means! AEW Dynamite is back in the 2300 Arena for the Sickos! Let’s get right into my AEW Dynamite Recap!!!
We started off hot with a frustrated Gabe Kidd hunting for Darby. Darby attempted to attack from behind, but Gabe overpowered him. The heated brawl continued ring-side. While Gabe punished him with heavy lariats and exposed turnbuckles, Darby countered by sticking Gabe’s arm inside one of the ring posts and also landing a top rope coffin drop to the outside.
Yuta showed up to attack as well, but Darby had something else in mind. He fell victim to Darby’s thumbtack-loaded skateboard that body-surfed across his back. With poor Yuta incapacitated, Darby turned his attention back to Gabe. That’s when Mox and the rest of the Deathriders had had enough and joined the melee. Hook came to rescue Darby along with the OPPS members Samoa Joe and Powerhouse Hobbs. A happy Willow also helped. Hmm, where’s Shibata? (Update: Shibata was in Japan.)
Meanwhile, Gabe and Darby continued to brawl backstage. Gabe tried to clobber him with a hammer, but Darby gained the upper hand with magic pixie dust. He proceeded to smother Gabe with a ‘suspiciously laced’ rag and tossed him into a body bag, and then dragged him away in a truck. Phew! What a chaotic way to start the show! Welcome to AEW, everyone!
The first match of the night was Mercedes Mone defending her TBS Championship against Alex Windsor. I liked how creative AEW gets when placing all of Mone’s nine belts. I mean, what’s next? How about sending drones out there to carry her belts? Are you listening, Tony Khan?
When the match started, Alex displayed her power and agility advantage. Going into this match, Winzaa had a plan to target the champion’s knees in order to apply the sharpshooter. But Mercedes countered with a buckle bomb on the apron and submission moves of her own. At one point in the match, Mercedes plays dirty by pulling Alex’s hair to gain an advantage and landed a crucifix bomb, but was countered with a pop-up powerbomb.
When Justin Roberts mentioned 5 minutes left, the intensity ramped up. Winzaa applied a figure-four leglock, which led to both women tumbling outside of the ring. She did manage to get Mercedes to tap out, but it wasn’t legal because they were outside! Ahhh! THE DRAMA!!!!
The fight continued in the ring when Mone performed a backstabber, followed by the Statementmaker, and Alex executed a blue thunder bomb, as well as a pump handle big pressure. At this moment, the crowd was chanting, “THIS IS AWESOME!”. I totally agreed with them. In the flurry of chain wrestling pins, Mercedes came out on top with one of the most devastating moves in pro wrestling…the roll-up. …hey, it works, people!
After the match, Winzaa humbly accepted her defeat and offered a sportsman’s handshake. Mercedes wanted none of it and gave her the middle finger. Feeling disrespected, Alex tried to go for the sharpshooter again, but Mone bopped her head with the belt. Adding insult to injury, she applied the Statementmaker to a dazed Winzaa.
At this moment, I was thinking to myself, who’s going to help poor Alex? Could it be Toni? What about Mina? To my surprise, it was RIHO!!! OMG!! The crowd went wild! Riho climbed onto the top rope to deliver a foot stomp to Mercedes’ spine. Could this mean Mone vs Riho at ALL OUT? If so, I’m all in!
An hour later, I see this! TK is the Dude…
Backstage, Renee caught up with Samoa Joe and Powerhouse Hobbs and wonders if there were any issues between them and Hook. Joe tells Renee to go ask Hook herself. Magically, Hook shows up and explains that he doesn’t need their help. He is also irked that Joe replaced him so quickly when he was out injured.
So, here’s the backstory. Originally, Hook was TRIOS Champs alongside Joe and Shibata. When Hook was out with an injury, Hobbs was his replacement. And to be honest, Powerhouse Hobbs fits The Opps REALLY well!
Joe explained to Hook that he did what he did in order to get the titles. At the same time, he is willing to offer help whether he likes it or not. Flustered, Hook walked away.
Wow! I can taste the tension in the air. It’s palpable. I can’t wait to see where this story goes!
In another backstage segment, the Single Pec Tattoo Guys (SPTG) Ricobald+GOA demeaned The Hurt Syndicate, claiming that they were ‘washed up’ and ‘has been’ guys. They are the evolution and want to prove it by demanding a match at ALL OUT. I don’t think this is a good idea, Bald.
Then we get a quick shot of Taz’s induction to the 2300 Arena Hardcore Hall of Fame. All I can say is, well deserved, Hardcore Jones. Oh, and if you don’t know why they didn’t do this on AEW Dynamite proper, that would be because Taz personally requested it be done off-camera, so that the other talent gets the spotlight and not him. So humble!!!
Back in the ring, Mark Briscoe, aka Chicken, once again called his shot for the TNT Title. He called out Don Callis to bring out one of his henchmen for a match. Don comes out and sets the match for this Saturday on Collision against none other than The Alpha, Konosuke Takeshita. Wow, what a tough opponent.
Feeling froggy, Chicken was hungry for a fight tonight! Don responded by feeding him Lance Archer. Are you sure that’s a good idea, Mark? Lance gave him a beating with multiple chokeslams, including one on the apron and one onto the steel steps. YIKES. Briscoe fought back with clotheslines and an outside dive. Chicken wiggled out of the Blackout finisher with Red Neck Kung Fu chops to the neck and chest. He collected his 50th AEW win with a top rope rolling powerbomb followed by a froggy bow. But will he get his 51st win on Collision…?
Backstage, Timeless Toni Storm remains protective of her title. She called out the locker room to step up if they wanted a shot. She ended her promo saying that God doesn’t judge; that’s her job. I thought that was a bar. Would Thekla take her challenge? It would be the most logical opponent, me thinks. We still got a few weeks until All Out to find out…and we still don’t have a Blood & Guts announcement, TK… And yes, I’m going to keep bringing that up in my AEW Dynamite Recap until something big happens with the women’s division!
In another segment, Renee caught up with Harley and Kris Statlander. I chuckled when Harley wanted to take on Brodido. What a menace! Speaking of being a menace, Yoots delivers a message to Stat-Daddy that the Death Riders have her back. Hmm. If I had to name this episode, I would call it, “I got yo’ back!”
So, what is Stat going to do? Is she going to take the Death Riders’ help? If so, what would they want in return? We shall see…
The third match was Brodido vs Claudio and Yoots. Wow, Yuta is everywhere in this episode, isn’t he? I’m glad he took some time to take the thumbtacks off his back at least. Sheesh.
Brody and Claudio chopped each other’s chests raw. I laughed when Bandido did the Macarena dance. I’m also in awe as he powered Claudio into a suplex. Claudio is no slouch either, as he caught him mid-air while he attempted a Dragon-Rana. I felt bad when Brodido double-slapped Yoots in the back. Hasn’t his back been tortured enough as it is? Nah, not really.
Moxley again came out for the assist, but Darby ruined his plans once more! Amidst the chaos, Bandido pins Yuta with a 21-plex. Brodido is one of the hottest things in AEW right now, so I’m glad they’re getting so many big-time matches and allowed to shine.
Okada had a chat with Renee about his issues with Takeshita. He wants to make it known that he’s the top dog in the DCF, not the Alpha. Ok, I need to see this match NOW! My only question is: Is it too soon to have a match at ALL OUT? Or will they wait for World’s End and the Continental Classic?
Backstage again, Renee talked to The Hurt Syndicate. Wow, she’s everywhere tonight, isn’t she? MVP explains that he used to see Ricobald as a top wrestler, but nowadays, all he does is whine. He sees him as a joke. Also, while being associated with Ricobald, GOA should be worried about their careers. MVP accepts his challenge. It will be a 3-on-3 match at ALL OUT. Let’s goooo.
In the ring, FTR surprised Adam Copeland with a beatdown. Christian Cage came out to even the odds. Security and the ROH wrestlers also come out to restore order. FTR Bald was feisty and delivered a Mind Buster to the poor sap Jordan Oliver. Surprisingly, Adam Priest landed some offense on Dax. The segment went a little too long for my taste.
Afterwards, FTR and Stokely were backstage picking on Adam Priest. They told him to pick a tag team member so he could have a match with them this Saturday on Collision. I guess TK really, really likes guys that is named Adam. ADAM!
Onto the PWG-Styled final match. “These Guys Again?” Young Bucks, Kyle Fletcher, and Josh Alexander face Jetspeed, Kenny Omega, and Hangman. For the Young Bucks’ entrance, a video played showing how desperate the Young Bucks were willing to go. They are now taking $20 meet and greets. That was hilarious! Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Josh Alexander and Hangman started off the match. Quadruple Plancha’s onto the bad guys occurred a few minutes later. The Young Bucks and Jetspeed were evenly matched. Josh seemed like he was being highlighted often. There was one point in the match when Nick landed consecutive Meltzer Drivers to Jetspeed. Do they still call it Meltzer Driver or TK Driver? Or both?
Anyhow, the bad guys singled out Speedball. After he was able to make the tag, Kenny and Fletchlight (he doesn’t mind that name!) displayed their strong style spirit for a brief stint.
Then, the reunion we were all waiting for happened: Kenny and Hangman came face to face with the Young Bucks. The crowd was on their feet, chanting, “The Elite, The, The Elite” and “This is AWESOME!” The chemistry these guys have together was amazing. Did I just see Nick Jackson attempt a buckshot lariat? Wow. Speedball delivered a reverse rana on Fletcher from the second rope. We even saw a brief 1-on-1 moment with Fletcher and Hangman. That would make for one hell of a future match, wouldn’t it? Kevin Knight ended up taking a pin from Fletcher’s sheer drop brainbuster.
After the match, the DCF used its numerical advantage and continued the assault. Josh was beating on Kenny, while Hangman received a chair brain buster special from Fletchlight. But Fletcher wasn’t done. He viciously suplexed Kenny onto an outside table. Oh no. It looked bad for both guys. Fletcher’s shoulder was bloodied, and Kenny’s neck might have been injured. The final moment showed the medical team surrounding Kenny as the DCF stood tall, looking satisfied.
You bastard! You killed Kenny!
Overall, I think this was a great show from the top (Riho’s return) to the bottom (cliffhanger ending). I was entertained! Were you? Please let us know your thoughts on my AEW Dynamite Recap!!!
Matches for the upcoming AEW Collision so far:
- Moxley vs Danny Garcia
- Mark Briscoe vs Konosuke Takeshita
- FTR vs Adam Priest and a mystery partner
- Allstar 8-women tag Toni Storm/Mina/Statlander/Harley vs Triangle of Madness/Bayne
Matches for AEW ALL OUT PPV
- C&C vs FTR (confirmed)
- Ricobald/GOA vs The Hurt Syndicate (confirmed)
- Mercedes Mone TBS Championship vs Riho (confirmed)
- Max Caster Open Challenge (confirmed)
- Timeless Toni Storm vs Thekla (possibility)
- Marc Brisco vs Kyle Fletcher TNT Championship (possibility)
- Moxley vs Darby Allin (possibility)
- Konosuke Takeshita vs Kazuchika Okada (possibility)
- Hologram vs El Clon (possibility)
