The John Report: AEW Dynamite 10/06/21 Review
Welcome to the AEW Dynamite review here on TJRWrestling. It’s the two-year anniversary of AEW Dynamite since the first episode of the show aired way back on October 2nd, 2019 (read my review here). Happy anniversary to AEW. They have some big matches set up for this week, so I’m writing a live review of it. Just a reminder that the next two weeks of Dynamite will be on Saturday nights on October 16 and October 23 because TNT in the US will be showing NHL games on Wednesdays of those weeks. Remember that in the US, Dynamite is moving to TBS in 2022, so the show won’t be moving around. For me, it’s TSN here in Canada. We have five TSN channels, Dynamite is usually on TSN2, but it’s TSN5 this week. As long as you check in advance to find it, you should be just fine.
This is AEW Dynamite #105 from Philadelphia, PA. Follow me on Twitter @johnreport. Here’s my AEW Dynamite TV review archive. Let’s get to it.
I sat down ready to go about two minutes into the show and the match already began. The introductions took place on AEW social media right before the 8pm ET start time. They started right at the top of the hour. The announcers were Jim Ross, Excalibur and Tony Schiavone.
The Super Elite – Kenny Omega, Adam Cole & The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) vs. Bryan Danielson, Christian Cage, Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus
Boy and Christian took turns tagging in and out as they worked over Cole with Christian hitting Cole with an uppercut. Matt was in illegally, so Christian and Boy took care of him. Omega went in illegally and took a double team armdrag takedown. Nick with a knee to the back of Boy, so Cole kicked Boy to rock him against the ropes. Omega tagged in with a springboard double ax to the back of Boy. Looks like Kenny got some new hair dye this week. The fans chanted “Kenny No Balls” after the recent crowd chant. Boy was against both Young Bucks for a long time because the worst referee had lost control, so Boy did an armdrag followed by an armbar. Bryan tagged in for the first time with forearms, chops and a barrage of kicks to Matt’s chest. Luchasaurus got a big pop tagging in, Bryan with a dropkick and Luchasaurus with a clothesline. The faces knocked the heels off the apron, so Nick was all alone taking a shoulder tackle, elbow, forearm and a splash from Luchasaurus. Kick by Luchasaurus into a slam by Boy got a two count as all eight guys got into a brawl. They were all on the floor with Christian tossing Matt into the ring apron. Brandon Cutlet sprayed Christian in the eye (the referee missed it because he was busy doing nothing in the ring) with whatever the spray is and Young Bucks hit the IndyTaker double team piledriver on the floor. Bucks hit cheap superkicks on Boy and Marko Stunt. The doctor checked on Christian on the floor. After a couple of minutes of ignoring rules, the match was restored again.
Jungle Boy remained the face in peril as the heels made quick tags, Cole held Boy and the Bucks kissed Cole on the cheek instead of doing a move. The fans cheered even though the wrestlers are heels. Omega tagged in with Boy hitting a suplex. Boy went for a kick to the head, but Omega ducked it and Boy came back with a clothesline. Nakazawa and Cutler got involved on the apron, so Bryan and Luchasaurus put them down. Bucks went for a double team suplex, but Boy countered it into a DDT. Bryan tagged in against Omega as the fans popped and chanted “YES” for this. Omega and Bryan exchanged forearms, Bryan did a backflip off the ropes and hit a running clothesline. Bryan hit a corner dropkick, then the kicks to the chest and Bryan hit a hurricanrana off the top rope. Bryan went up top and hit a headbutt to the shoulder for two as the Bucks made the save. Luchasaurus hit both Bucks with a double clothesline. Cole with a knee on Luchasaurus, Boy with a kick on Cole, Omega with a Snapdragon Suplex on Boy and Bryan hit a Tiger Suplex (hooking the arms) on Omega for two. Bryan with the Cattle Mutilation on Omega, but Nick hit a Senton Bomb on Bryan to break that up. Luchasaurus tagged in, he threw the four heels around the ring, kick to Omega and Luchasaurus hit a running splash, clothesline, kick and Cole hit him with a kick. Luchasaurus gave Cole a Chokeslam on Omega. Luchasaurus with some great kicks on both Bucks and a moonsault on Omega/Cole on the floor. Nick kicked Luchasaurus on the floor. Boy with a step over the top hurricanrana. Matt kicked Boy and Bryan hit a suicide dive on Matt. Omega ran the ropes with a somersault dive on everybody on the floor. Cole didn’t join in because he just yelled: “ADAM COLE BAY BAY!” Cool. Luchasaurus with a Chokeslam and moonsault on Cole for two. Super Elite did a low blow spot that the referee didn’t see. The Elite went for a team Powerbomb on Luchasaurus, they botched that and then moved on. The announcers tried to defend them by saying how big Luchasaurus is. Boy ate a double superkick. Omega hit a Snapdragon Suplex on Boy and Cole hit a Panama Sunrise on Boy. Bryan broke it up. Bryan beat up all The Elite guys with forearms. Bryan with kicks on Omega, then Omega caught the kick and The Elite hit three superkicks. The four Elite guys all hit knees on Boy at the same time for a pinfall win after 19 minutes. JR questioned how you can have four guys in the ring for that ending spot. Because it’s AEW, JR. It’s been like this for two years.
Winners by pinfall: The Super Elite – Kenny Omega, Adam Cole & The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson)
Analysis: ****1/4 This was an outstanding tag team match with a lot of chaos and the usual brutal refereeing that makes AEW frustrating to watch sometimes. In terms of cool moves, counters, nearfalls and drama, I really enjoy it. From a logical point of view, there are issues when you have guys in the ring for several minutes at a time with no attempts at trying to clear the win as a referee should. Anyway, I like how they took Christian out earlier in the match to make it more logical for the heels to win with the 4 on 3 advantage for most of the match. You have JR openly complaining about the refereeing for two years now and nothing ever changes. Anyway, it was still a lot of fun to watch, I rated it highly and I’m sure the guy that the Young Bucks name moves after might rate it higher than me too. Good stuff by Omega and Danielson too. The fans really want the rematch. I do too.
CM Punk is up next.
(Commercial)
Jon Moxley did a promo saying there is no man in AEW that can pin or submit him, so tonight they want to play games with ladders. Moxley said that if you want to get weird and stupid with ladders then let’s do it. Moxley said that his three-month-old daughter is insane, so let’s do it tonight in Philly and in his company AEW.
Let’s Hear from CM Punk
CM Punk made his entrance to a big pop. He ran off the ramp and jumped into the crowd. The crowd loved him as usual.
Punk asked if the fans were sick of this love fest and they yelled “NO” at him. Punk talked about the cool Jordan sneakers he was wearing. Punk spoke about how he lived down the road in Philly for three years saying that he wrestled several times a week and he trained wrestlers at a school. Punk said when he bought a laptop he thought “holy shit” he was rich. Punk said he was so glad to be back in this community referring to the wrestling fans. Punk misspoke saying cheesecake when he meant cheesesteak and he said he’ll either wrestle or buy you all cheesesteaks. Punk asked them if he should wrestle or buy them all cheesesteaks. The fans chanted “wrestle” for him. Punk said you can buy your own cheesesteaks because he wants to wrestle and said he wants to wrestle Daniel Garcia on Rampage. Punk took off his Jordan sneakers on the ring apron and handed them to some kid dressed like Orange Cassidy. Punk spoke to the kid and Punk left. That’s cool by Punk.
Analysis: They are taping Rampage after Dynamite this week, so it’s a way to promote a match for Friday’s Rampage while telling the Philly crowd that Punk will have a match in front of them. Punk did a good job of telling his history in Philly, which is where Ring of Honor’s home base was when Punk was there, so that’s why he spent a lot of time in the Philly area as well as other towns around it.
There was a video about Arn Anderson talking about how Cody was too Hollywood now. Arn was outside of Cody’s house and he was burning a suit in a fire. Cody was upstairs asking Arn what he was doing and asked: “What are you gonna do, shoot me?” Good line by Cody after Arn’s comments from last week. Cody walked out of his house (in a suit) and walked out to Arn on the grass. Cody gave Arn his tie, Cody told Arn he didn’t have to throw it away and said he get it. Arn slapped Cody in the face and Cody threw his tie into the fire.
Analysis: The story is that Coach Arn is trying to toughen up Cody because Arn thinks Cody has gone Hollywood due to his TV shows and other interests out of AEW. This might work in terms of making Cody likable towards the fans again.
(Commercial)
There was a brief video about Bobby Fish talking about how skilled he is. Fish made his entrance with a graphic noting that he has been wrestling for 19 years. Fish was recently released by WWE’s NXT brand. Fish is making his AEW debut.
Sammy Guevara entered as the reigning TNT Champion. Sammy won the title from Miro on Dynamite last week. A video of Sammy was shown where he gave Fuego del Sol a new truck. Fuego said he’ll put it on the line for an AEW Title shot. They laughed because it was a joke.
TNT Championship: Sammy Guevara vs. Bobby Fish
Sammy hit an impressive leapfrog over Fish followed by a dropkick. Sammy with a shoulderblock and a kick to the head. Sammy went for a springboard attack, Fish kicked the rope and Sammy hit the mat hard. Fish with a senton splash followed by a kick to the back. Sammy with a kick to the back. Fish with a back elbow. They went to a picture in picture break.
(Commercial – Most of the break saw Fish in control of the action.)
Fish remained in control with a body slam. When Fish tried an attack over the top, Sammy got his knees up to block and Sammy hit a running back elbow. Sammy jumped off the turnbuckle, Fish with a kick and a kick to the back of the head. Fish hit a backdrop driver for a two count. Sammy hit a Spanish Fly slam as the fans chanted “Let’s go Sammy” for Guevara. Sammy went up top, took way too long and Fish kicked the legs to crotch Sammy on the top rope. Fish hit an Avalanche Falcon Arrow slam off the top for two. Fish with an Exploder Suplex into the turnbuckle for two. Sammy avoided a kick from Fish, Sammy lifted him on the shoulders and hit the GTH for the pinfall win after ten minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Sammy Guevara
Analysis: *** Good match to put Sammy over a respected veteran wrestler like Fish. It was a basic story with Fish controlling most of the match, Sammy making the big comeback and finding a way to win as the fighting champion. I think most people figured Sammy would win, but I loved that spot with Fish hitting the Falcon Arrow slam off the top. This is the right way to build up a new champion by having him win competitive matches like this. The crowd loves Sammy and he is one of my favorite wrestlers too.
Dan Lambert and members of America’s Top Team made their way down to the ring. They came in through different parts of the arena. Scorpio Sky was there along with Lambert’s allies. No Ethan Page because his wife gave birth to their son today. Junior Dos Santos beat up Sammy with forearms and punches. Fuego del Sol tried to save, but he got taken out easily and ate some forearms from some of Lambert’s guys.
Chris Jericho’s music hit as the legendary Jericho and Jake Hager went down to the ring. Jericho and Hager got into a brawl with the MMA guys with Jericho and Hager managing to beat up about four guys. The fans popped big for that as Jericho and Hager saved their Inner Circle buddy Sammy.
Lambert tried to do a promo while the song was playing. Even when the song stopped, the fans kept on singing. Lambert was whining about the fans continuing to sing the song. Lambert said that Jericho has been a big deal in this business for a long time. Lambert called Philly a “shit-stain” town. Lambert mentioned that AEW is coming to Miami, which is the home of America’s Top Team. The fans were booing loudly while Lambert kept on talking. Lambert said that they will have a six-man tag with Scorpio Sky, Ethan Page & Junior Dos Santos against The Inner Circle’s Chris Jericho, Jake Hager & Sammy Guevara. Lambert said that Jorge Masvidal will be with them and Jericho knows him from when he hit Jericho with a knee two weeks ago.
Jericho said he didn’t hear a damn thing that Lambert said (due to how loud the crowd was booing Lambert!). Jericho had a microphone that wasn’t working. Jericho got a new microphone saying they were going to beat the living shit out of them and their dipshit team.
Analysis: It was a memorable segment mainly because of how loud the crowd was during Lambert’s promo. Jericho likely didn’t hear legitimately because it was tough for us to hear watching at home. Anyway, it sets up a big match, so that’s cool with me.
The Acclaimed, who are the number one ranked tag team, did a promo in a backstage area with some stairs. Max Caster did a rap about how they will do their thing against Lucha Brothers on Rampage. Anthony Bowens said they’re going to bring home the AEW Tag Team Titles.
Coming up next is a big announcement from Tony Khan and Darby Allin faces Nick Comoroto.
(Commercial)
Tony Schiavone was in the ring telling us that AEW changed the wrestling business two years ago. Tony sucked up to Tony Khan during the promo. Smart move. Tony said that on January 5th, Dynamite will move over to TBS (this was known, but he’s just reminding those of you that need a reminder). Referee Aubrey Edwards was in the ring with Tony. Tony announced that they will also have a new championship – The TBS Championship and it will be in the AEW Women’s division. Aubrey took the black cover off the title and showed it off. The crowd cheered.
Look at that BELT 😍 #AEWDynamitepic.twitter.com/Xy2W0hHcie
— AEW on TV (@AEWonTV) October 7, 2021
Analysis: Good for the women in AEW to have another championship up for grabs. This was reported a few weeks ago, so now it’s official.
Darby Allin was shown during a pre-taped interview with Jim Ross. When JR mentioned the face paint, Darby mentioned why he painted his face. Darby spoke about how his uncle was drinking and driving when Darby was five years old, so Darby’s uncle passed away. Darby said he paces half of his face because 50% of him feels dead inside. Darby said he faced death that day, but he is still here. Darby said that everybody expected him last week to pop him in the face, but Max is not going to win this war. Darby said he’s met people like Max, but he knows Max has never met somebody like Darby and he guarantees that.
Analysis: Darby continues to be one of the most likable guys in AEW and he has been for over two years. I don’t see this guy turning into a heel, or at least I don’t think it would be easy to do.
Darby Allin (w/Sting) vs. Nick Comoroto (w/QT Marshall & Aaron Solow)
Allin hit a somersault dive off the turnbuckle onto Comoroto and Solow on the floor. Allin with a backsplash, then a running dropkick against the corner. When Allin did a charging attack, Comoroto caught him and hit a powerslam. They went to a picture in picture break.
(Commercial)
The match returned with Allin hitting a flipping Stunner. Allin went up top and hit a Coffin Drop to the back for the pinfall win. It went about five minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Darby Allin
Analysis: * They only showed about two minutes full screen. Why not just go to break before the match, then show the whole match and that way we can actually see the full match on our TVs instead of on a split-screen? It’s not that difficult. I chose to go to the bathroom during the break and came back to see the match was finished. Anyway, Allin continues to pick up wins over lower level talent while Comoroto looks like a tough guy, but doesn’t get booked in a strong manner.
Post match, QT Marshall went into the ring and hit Sting with a Diamond Cutter. Sting no sold it, then Sting hit a low blow kick and Sting hit a Scorpion Death Drop. The crowd cheered.
Analysis: Cool. Marshall’s group gets beat up a lot. I figured MJF would get involved since he started a storyline with Darby Allin, but no sign of MJF there.
The Dark Order guys and Anna Jay were in the locker room. They agreed to make decisions together. They did some comedy lines, there was bickering, Anna spoke up and they all went quiet. They did the “claw” symbol together to show unity.
Dante Martin was interviewed by Tony Schiavone. Martin has said he is proving to be a problem to everybody in the locker room. Martin talked about how he’s here to fight anybody that they can bring to him. The lights went out, the fans popped because they knew what was going on and the spotlight was on Malakai Black in the ring. Black spit something in Martin’s eyes and hit Martin with a Black Mass kick to the head. Black told Martin he accepts. Black left.
Analysis: There’s a simple way to set up a match. Black’s uniqueness makes him stand out. Martin is such an impressive athlete while Black is undefeated in AEW, so I would expect Black to get the win.
(Commercial)
Ricky Starks was in the ring with the FTW Championship. Starks mentioned this is the original FTW Championship, he said that it started in places like Philly and it was Taz’s championship because he had a mindset similar to him. Starks claimed that Brian Cage didn’t want to show up to work. Starks said that he was going to challenge Cage to a Philly Street Fight match. Cage ran down to the ring in his wrestling gear, Cage with clotheslines and then Powerhouse Hobbs & Hook pulled Starks out of the ring. Cage stood in the ring as the heels left.
Analysis: That was rushed. They only got about three minutes to do the promo and have the heels run away. If Cage wants to get Starks so badly, why not leave the ring to go after them? It just felt so rushed without much drama.
There were promos from some of AEW women’s wrestlers (Thunder Rosa, Skye Blue, Ruby Soho & Jade Cargill) talking about how they are part of the TBS Tournament, so they all think they are going to win.
Hikaru Shida made her entrance for the lone women’s match on the show. Shida is 49-9 so she’s going to try to become the first woman to get 50 wins in AEW. They had a 50-win trophy for her before the match. Serena Deeb entered as the opponent and she’s 6-1 in 2021.
Serena Deeb vs. Hikaru Shida
Serena and Shida did some mat wrestling to start as they exchanged some holds. Shida wanted a handshake, Serena with a slap to the face. Shida set up Serena near the apron and Shida hit a knee lift to the head. Shida wanted to do a move off a chair, but Serena tossed the chair under the ring. Serena hit a neckbreaker off the middle rope leading to a picture in picture break.
(Commercial)
The match returned with Shida hitting punches to the face and a front facelock airplane spin to put Serena down. Shida went up top and hit a missile dropkick for two. Serena went for a move, Shida got out of it, and Serena hooked the arms for a pin attempt. Shida came back with a knee that sent Serena out of the ring to the floor. Shida jumped off the middle rope onto Serena on the floor. Back in the ring, Serena with a chop block and a dragon screw leg whip against the ropes. Serena hit a neckbreaker for two. Serena with elbows to the knee, Shida kicked Serena into the turnbuckle and Shida hit a roundhouse kick to the head. Shida with a Dominator slam for two count. Shida with a running elbow followed by the Falcon Arrow slam for two count. Deeb blocked a kick, then knee strikes from Shida and Serena with an eye rake followed by a knee wrench. Serena hooked Shida’s arms and hit the Detox sitout slam for a two count. Serena drove Shida’s leg into the mat repeatedly and applied the Serenity Lock with Shida tapping out. Serena celebrated the win. It went about 10 minutes.
Winner by submission: Serena Deeb
Analysis: *** A back and forth technical wrestling match that was pretty good to watch. Serena is such a skilled in-ring performer that knows what she is doing out there in terms of going after the body parts of her opponent. I like how Serena worked on the knee repeatedly and that led to the finish. Shida is a good wrestler too, but I’m all for Serena getting the win because she deserves a push.
Serena wouldn’t let Aubrey Edwards raise her head. Serena grabbed a trophy that said Shida was about to get 50 wins and Serena hit Shida in the head with it! Nice. The fans popped for that as a big moment and booed.
Analysis: I really liked those heel actions by Serena there. She refused to have her hand raised and then attacked with a trophy. Instant heat. It worked.
Darby Allin was in the parking lot with Alex Marvez saying that MJF wanted a match with Darby Allin on Dynamite. Darby said that he accepted. A limo pulled up to Allin and one of the guys hit Allin in the back with a steel chair. Three guys with masks threw Allin into a guard rail. The bigger masked man gave Allin the F10 slam on the guard rail. MJF walked out with his mask and choked Allin with the skateboard. It was The Pinnacle’s MJF, FTR, Wardlow and Shawn Spears (holding the camera) that did the attack. Allin was left on the ground selling the attack.
Analysis: Good heel attack by MJF and The Pinnacle group.
This Friday on AEW Rampage:
* CM Punk vs. Daniel Garcia
* Jade Cargill vs. Skye Blue
* FTW Championship Philly Street Fight: Ricky Starks vs. Brian Cage
* AEW Tag Team Championships: Lucha Brothers vs. The Acclaimed.
Lio Rush did a promo saying he is a huge fan of Dante Martin saying that he’s a businessman. Rush said that he sees Martin as an undervalued commodity. Rush said if Dante takes this challenge from Malakai Black, then maybe Rush should have his people call Dante. Rush said they can talk soon. That was it.
Analysis: It sounds like Rush wants to be a wrestler that also gives people advice.
(Commercial)
Britt Baker, the AEW Women’s Champion, did an interview with Rebel and Jamie Hayter with Tony Schiavone doing the interview earlier in the day. Baker told the other women to fight in their little tournament and she’ll be watching from the top.
The Casino Ladder Match is up first. Two wrestlers start, every two minutes somebody joins the match and the first person to graph the casino chip above the ring will win the match. The winner gets an AEW World Title match.
Casino Ladder Match: Orange Cassidy vs. Pac vs. Andrade El Idolo vs. Matt Hardy vs. Lance Archer vs. Jon Moxley vs. “Hangman” Adam Page
Orange Cassidy and Pac were the first two wrestlers to start the match. There were ladders and tables surrounding the ring. Cassidy tried to regroup to the floor, then back into the ring and Pac hit a tilt a whirl backbreaker. When Pac brought the ladder into the ring, Cassidy put it to the apron and Pac hit a brainbuster. The two minutes were up.
Andrade El Idolo was next. This is only his third AEW match since his first match in early July. They don’t use this guy enough. Pac hit a dropkick into a ladder that Andrade was holding, so Andrade was down on the floor. Pac set up a ladder, Andrade jumped onto the ladder with him and Andrade hit a sunset flip Powerbomb over the ladder and Powerbombed Pac into the mat. That is such a cool move. It’s not like it is the first time I have seen it, but it’s always awesome whenever it happens. Cassidy did his hand in the pocket kicks to the shins, Andrade with a chop, Cassidy with a headscissors and a dropkick on Pac into the ladder.
Matt Hardy was next to face off with Orange Cassidy, who he has been feuding with. Hardy with a Side Effect on Orange, then Hardy hit all three guys with a ladder. Hardy went up the ladder, Orange pulled him down and they went to a picture in picture break.
(Commercial)
Lance Archer made his entrance in the match during the commercial. Archer dominated the other guys in the match and set up multiple ladders in the ring. Archer slammed Cassidy onto a ladder that was bridged against the ropes. Archer was all alone in the ring as he slowly set up a ladder. Archer took way too long to set up as the clock went down to zero.
It was time for Jon Moxley, who was announced for the match and came in from the back end of the arena. Archer left the ring and got into a brawl with Archer. They fought in the crowd with Moxley throwing a chair at Archer. Moxley sent Archer back first into the barricade. Archer and Moxley took turns throwing chairs at eachother. Archer had a ladder in the ring, but Cassidy hit him with two Orange Punches in a row. Moxley back in and he tossed Cassidy into a ladder. Moxley with a suplex into a slam. Moxley with a dropkick into Archer against the turnbuckle.
The Joker spot belongs to “Hangman” Adam Page making his return. Huge pop for Page making his return after being away for a few months. Page was on fire with attacks on everybody around the ring. It was a chaotic scene with Page hitting moves on everybody. It was tough to keep up with everything while also tweeting my excitement about Page being back. The fans chanted “Cowboy Shit” for Page. Pac brought a table into the ring. Pac Andrade battled on the top rope with Pac punching Andrade off the ropes onto a ladder that was on the floor. Pac and Page battled on the apron with Page hitting a Deadeye slam off the ladder through a table. It looked like Page hit more of the table than Pac did. Moxley with a Paradigm Shift on Page. Moxley climbed a ladder, Cassidy went after him, Moxley bit the face and Hardy tossed the ladder over. Hardy set up Cassidy on a table and Hardy hit a leg drop off a ladder onto Cassidy through a table. Archer grabbed Moxley on the ladder and gave him a Chokeslam. Archer set up the ladder, but Page hit the Buckshot Lariat on Archer! That was so great. Page went up the ladder, Moxley hit Page in the back with a chair and Moxley was close to reaching the chip. The fans actually booed Moxley for stopping Page. Moxley and Page battled on the ladder with some punches until Moxley dropped off the ladder and rolled to the floor. Page went up top and grabbed the poker chip. Page sat on top of the ladder with the poker chip as the winner of the match! The fans loved that. I think it was around 15 minutes. I didn’t time it perfectly.
Winner by pinfall: “Hangman” Adam Page
Analysis: ***3/4 I thought this was a very good match with a lot of action and a happy ending too because the fans loved seeing Hangman back in action while also picking up a huge win. Page earning the AEW World Title match against Kenny Omega is something a lot of fans want to see, so he was the right choice to win here. I thought it would be Page as the mystery guy and I’m sure most sane AEW fans thought so as well. It was interesting how the fans actually booed Moxley a few times for trying to stop Page from winning even though that’s the whole point of the match. I thought Moxley’s last bump off the ladder to the floor was a bit cheesy because it was only after some punches and Moxley had to sell it like he was out of it. I just think they could have done more for that final spot. I also think it would have been better if there were more climbing attempts because really there wasn’t a lot of that. With a stronger finisher, I would have gone over four stars for this. Still a fun match with the right guy getting the win.
Page celebrated on the ladder with a beer and the fans cheered. JR signed off wanting the Sooners to beat Texas and Page drank some more beer. That was the end of the show.
Analysis: We don’t know yet when Page is going to face Omega, but hopefully it’s at the Full Gear PPV. That makes the most sense to me although they could opt to do it on a Dynamite episode. I’m not sure right now. Page has been away because his wife was pregnant. I don’t know if she had the baby yet or not, but it’s good to see Page back in action. He’s great.
Three Stars of the Show
- “Hangman” Adam Page – Welcome back!
- The Super Elite
- Bryan Danielson, Christian Cage, Luchasaurus & Jungle Boy
The Scoreboard
This Week: 8 out of 10
Last Week: 7.5
2021 Average: 7.38
Final Thoughts
I’m going with an 8 out of 10 because the first and last matches were awesome. The first match was a chaotic tag team match full of action. Yes, I complain the refereeing because it’s a problem in AEW, but it’s still a lot of fun to watch all of the moves those wrestlers can do. The main event was more of a violent multi-man match with some big spots by everybody until Hangman Page found a way to take care of Jon Moxley and get the win. As I wrote above, a stronger finish would have helped, but I think the result is what people care about the most. It was the right guy getting the win.
I think the rest of the show was mostly good. Some segments and matches felt rushed. The Serena/Shida match was very good and got a few more minutes than most AEW Dynamite women’s matches, so that’s a positive too.
It was a very entertaining episode from top to bottom. A hot crowd in Philly as usual. I enjoyed it.
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Thanks for reading. Go Los Angeles Rams, Toronto Raptors and Toronto Maple Leafs. You can contact me using any of the methods below.
John Canton
Email: mrjohncanton@gmail.com
Twitter: @johnreport