CM Punk’s In Ring Dynamite Debut
Bobby Fish has been a great pickup for AEW. I have enjoyed all of the matches he has been involved in thus far and he’s a veteran that can give a lot of advice to the younger talent. Also, I know I am not the only one to think it, but how great could a Bobby Fish and Daniel Garcia tag team be?
I thought CM Punk looked really good in this match ring shape wise and the more he wrestles the better he is getting. They told a fun story throughout with Bobby Fish targeting the knee of CM Punk, and more specifically the knee that Punk uses to hit his opponents with the GTS.
Punk’s selling of the knee was tremendous. There was a spot in the match where Punk is on the top turnbuckle and comes down with an elbow, but due to his injured knee and not wanting to put pressure on it, he comes off the top on one leg.
It would play into the finish. At one point Punk would attempt the GTS only for Fish to counter it into a dragon screw. The ending would see Punk finally hit the GTS with the bad knee and slowly Punk would crawl over to make the cover and get the three count. Fish kicks out straight after the pinfall to show how close he was surviving and how much it took out Punk from hitting the move
Solid match, great selling, a compelling story, and a fun way to start Dynamite.
Maxwell’s Dominance, Darby Returns
MJF comes out with Wardlow and Shawn Spears. He has a very short match with Anthony Greene which is completely dominated by MJF and is over within a minute as MJF hits the Heat Seeker for the win.
MJF grabs the microphone after the match and runs down the city of Boston. He had some cutting lines and continues to push the envelope, some people might find offense to it, but I think he’s killing it as a heel, and it makes you want to cheer for someone to stand up to him and a great heel should offend.
He brings up again how he has broken Darby Allin mentally and runs down Sting after he knocked him last week on Dynamite. MJF also mentions how it was he that defeated Adam Page for the Dynamite Diamond Ring two years ago and how after Full Gear he will be going after whoever the World Champion is.
Sting’s theme hits but it’s all a ruse as MJF and Spears start laughing. Suddenly the lights go out and when they come back Sting is in the ring. Stinger takes out Spears and Wardlow as MJF escapes to the outside. There’s a fan in the crowd dressed in a Halloween costume. He reveals himself to be Darby Allin. Max retreats to the top of the stage as Darby brings out a skateboard covered in thumbtacks which he uses to hit over the back of Wardlow.
Darby ends the segment by challenging MJF to a match at Full Gear. It was a good segment, and it continues what has been an enjoyable build to their match at Full Gear. MJF is hitting it on all cylinders, and I like that they’re teasing a potential World Title match between Adam Page and MJF.
TNT Championship
Sammy Guevara defended the TNT Title against Ethan Page. They mention beforehand how everyone is banned from ringside to make sure that nobody from American Top Team or Scorpio Sky will interfere.
They brawl for a bit on the outside before the match officially begins. I like that part and it shows the animosity between the two, especially coming off Dark where Men of the Year gave Sammy a bloodied beatdown.
Sammy was spectacular in the match with a lot of high-flying action and Ethan Page playing a great base for a lot of Sammy’s offense. The highlight of the match was Sammy hitting a shooting star dive to Page on the outside but also coming down and hitting him with a forearm which made the move look even more devastating.
The ending came when Page went for a powerbomb but Sammy counters it into a rollup for the win and to successfully retain his TNT Title. This was a really fun match with a lot of action in it. I love how each of the TNT Champions have been able to bring their own in ring style to their reigns, going from the powerhouse performances of Miro to the now acrobatic offense of Sammy.
Scorpio Sky hits the ring immediately the match ends and he and Page begin beating down Sammy. The rest of The Inner Circle run down to help their stablemate and run off the Men of the Year. Chris Jericho says he has respect for Scorpio as he has beaten Jericho but says that the only thing Page has beaten is himself in a hotel room. Jericho ends the promo announcing that the ten-person tag match at Full Gear will be a Minneapolis Street Fight.
Shida’s Fiftieth Win
The rematch between Hikaru Shida and Serena Deeb is also part of the first round in the TBS Title Tournament. Shida was once again going for win number fifty. I thought they had a great match a few weeks ago, however this match was at another level and one of the best women’s matches in AEW history.
Serena is now in full heel mode and came out in the Brett Hart inspired outfit. Deeb played the heel great as she tried taking away Shida’s big moment again and there were many times throughout the match where I thought Serena would get the win and they would continue Shida’s chase for fifty wins.
They exchanged a lot of strikes in the match as well displaying a lot of chain wrestling, and really playing to each other’s strengths throughout. Shida would get the win after Deeb went for the Deebtox only for it to be countered into a rollup for the win.
Before Shida can celebrate her milestone win and advancement into the next round, Serena is right back with a vicious attack and continuing the assault on Shida’s leg. Referees and Jerry Lyn come down to the ring to break it up.
I like that they’re keeping the feud going and the Shida leg injury will play a big part when she goes against Nyla Rose in the next round of the tournament and gives a reason for the eventual rubber match with Serena Deeb whether that be at the next Pay Per View or kept for a big Dynamite or Rampage.
The Elimination of 10
Dark Order’s 10 is out for the final match in the first round of the World Title Eliminator Tournament. Mox makes his way through the crowd looking aggressive and angry. He wastes no time as he hits the ring, and the match doesn’t last long. 10 gets busted open and is able to put in a little offense but it’s shut down and Mox hits the Paradigm Shift to win and advance to the semi-finals against Orange Cassidy.
I like that it was another dominant performance from Moxley. I don’t think it hurts 10 that much, and the way they’ve been telling the story with Jon Moxley’s character it makes sense for him to get a win like this. I also feel like we might get something similar with Orange Cassidy, where Orange will get more offense in, but it still might be a shorter match than usual as they put over Jon’s ruthlessness and that he’s here to win and then go back home to his daughter with no joking around.
It’s interesting because while I assume the eventual final at Full Gear will be Danielson vs Moxley, and I think it would be a an excellent match especially now with Mox showing a more vicious side, the idea of Eddie Kingston getting an upset win over Bryan and reaching the final to compete against his best friend would create a compelling story and it would be one year since their brutal ‘I Quit’ match. Either way I think we are set for a great ending to the Eliminator Tournament.
Other Segments
- Cody Rhodes and Arn Anderson were out to address Cody’s recent win. There was a lot of inside references about how Cody won’t turn, and how that would be the easy way for him. He talks about how he loves the fans and apologises to The Nightmare Family and Arn. He’s interrupted by Andrade El Idilo who insults and mocks Cody. Malakai Black appears in the ring, and they beat down Cody and Arn. Pac runs out for the save and cleans house. Pac looked like a badass and it’s announced next week it’ll be Cody vs Andrade.
- There was a Malakai Black backstage promo earlier in the show where he basically says what he said in his social media post about how it’s not about his shoulders being pinned to the mat, but how he has made the fans turn on Cody and is inside his head.
- Tony Schiavone interviewed Bryan Danielson and Eddie Kingston ahead of their match on Rampage. Eddie defends himself from Bryan’s comments about him last week and says that Bryan hasn’t walked in his shoes and couldn’t understand his battle with depression. Bryan tells Tony that’s the Eddie he wants to fight, the fired up and angry version. Bryan calls Eddie and Moxley the two most dangerous wrestlers in the world, but he is going to prove that he is the best professional wrestler.
- We had interviews with FTR and Lucha Brothers throughout the night. Both teams sounded good as they continue to hype up their upcoming match at Full Gear for the AEW World Tag Titles.
- Britt Baker was interviewed backstage. It was mentioned that on the Chris Jericho cruise, Britt walked out on her match against Abadon. Tony Khan has made it official that on Rampage it will be Britt vs Abadon in a no disqualification match where if Abadon wins she will receive a shot at the AEW Women’s Championship.
Who You Gonna Call?
The main event featured the Dark Order’s Evil Uno dressed as cowboy, Stu Grayson as Kratos, Colt Cabana as Brandon Cutler and John Silver as Bambi. There was also two people dressed in a horse outfit that came to the stage with them but returned to the back
The Elite featured Kenny Omega, Adam Cole and The Young Bucks dressed up in Ghostbusters outfits along with their proton packs. Someone was also dressed in the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man outfit which commentary assumed was Brandon Cutler.
This match won’t be for everyone. It was a fun match that had all men competing in their costumes, but even in the fun environment they were still telling a serious story. Silver and Grayson got to shine a lot throughout the match The Elite were good at trying to take away the big win for the crowd favourites.
The match had a lot of action in it including a spot when the referee got knocked out allowing The Elite to hit low blows on their opponents, then take them out with the proton packs. They then deliver a combination powerbomb to Colt on the packs.
The ending of the match came when the top end of the horse came out. The Elite attack the person and it’s revealed that it’s Brandon Cutler who has his mouth sealed. The Elite and the Dark Order begin brawling as Matt Jackson is left in the ring. The camera focuses on Matt’s reaction with the Marshmallow Man behind him. It’s here when the crowd realise who it is and Stay Puft reveals himself to be Hangman Adam Page which gets an enormous reaction.
Page unloads on Matt Jackson and hits the Deadeye on Kenny Omega. John Silver hits his finisher on Matt Jackson as The Dark Order get the win. Post-match, Dark Order celebrate with Adam Page as Dynamite goes off the air.
As I said it’s a match that not everyone is going to like, but I think the ending worked and continues the push towards the main event of Full Gear. It gave the Dark Order a big win and Hangman once again comes off looking like a huge star so it worked in that sense.
Final Thoughts: I thought the opening match, the TNT Title match, and the Serena Deeb vs Hikaru Shida match were all great matches. The main event was fun and continues the World Title story and the two shorter matches had a purpose. Everything else moved along nicely. I’m looking forward to the rest of the TBS Title Tournament. One of the criticisms of AEW has been its women’s division, but the match tonight shows the talent is there they just need to continue developing the characters and allowing more time to tell stronger stories.