The John Report: AEW Dynamite 12/03/25 Review
This week’s AEW Dynamite features a big women’s tag team match, plus more of the Continental Classic with Claudio Castagnoli facing Jon Moxley.
It’s Continental Classic season, so AEW shows are filled with matches from the tournament. As I mentioned in last week’s review, I like the tournament concept, but the problem is the Continental Title hasn’t been defended since July, yet we’re supposed to think it’s a coveted title? It’s a big reach, in my opinion. I think they should make the tournament bigger and say the winner gets an AEW World Title shot. But hey, it’s not up to me.
I’m going to do a condensed style review this week. I am dealing with a cold. I watched the show late last night without writing about it. I’ll write about it in a condensed style. Next week, for Winter is Coming, I’ll be detailed again.
This was AEW Dynamite episode #322 from Fishers Event Center in Fishers, Indiana. Follow me on Twitter/X @johnreport. Let’s get to it.
It’s Wednesday, and you know what that means. Excalibur was on commentary with Bryan Danielson and Tony Schiavone.
Face to Face: Samoa Joe and Eddie Kingston
The AEW World Champion Samoa Joe and Eddie Kingston were in the ring for a promo segment with Tony Schiavone. Joe is also an AEW Trios Champion. Joe faces Eddie on Dynamite next week on December 10 at Dynamite – Winter is Coming. Joe sent Tony out of the ring.
Joe talked about how he wanted to teach Hook a lesson. Joe said he had Hook hang out with Eddie Kingston because Eddie has never got it done and never lived up to his potential. Joe told Eddie he won’t cross the finish line again and it’s because Joe will be choked out.
Eddie trashed Joe for saying he sold out by flying on private jets. Eddie claimed he gets s**t done when he yells and screams, so that’s why he does it. Eddie said in the past, Joe showed the world what it meant to be a World Champion. Eddie told Joe that if he doesn’t bring the submission machine and doesn’t bring the Joe that beat up his mentor Homicide for years, then Eddie will eat him alive on the 10th.
Analysis: They are both great talkers, so I enjoyed the segment. It wasn’t long and they got right to their points without getting into a brawl. I don’t think Kingston has a shot at beating Joe for the AEW World Title next week, but at least the fans will get behind him.
The Opps’ other members Hook, Powerhouse Hobbs and Katsuyori Shibata were backstage for a promo. Hook said that Joe will take care of Kingston. Hobbs said if Dark Order can get past them tonight, then they can get a title shot. Hook said it will be real light work.
Continental Classic Gold League: Kazuchika Okada defeated Pac
It’s tough to do a heel-heel match, even when you’re as good as these two guys. The first half before the commercial was a bit slow, and then the pace picked up. Okada was in control with his top rope elbow and the middle finger salute drew a big pop. Pac came back with a Cutter, but Okada hit his amazing dropkick. Pac countered Okada into a pin attempt and sat on top for two. Pac hit two German Suplexes in a row for a two count. Pac hit a running lariat and went for the Brutalizer, but Okada turned over to hook the leg for the pinfall win after 14 minutes. These guys are great and had a competitive match as expected. (Rating: ***1/2 out of 5)
The TNT Champion Mark Briscoe mentioned wrestling Daniel Garcia twice last year, and they each won once. Mark said Garcia has changed as a Death Rider. Mark said they can do the match at Winter is Coming Collision on December 13th in Cardiff, Wales.
The Demand trio of AEW National Champion Ricochet, Bishop Kaun, and Toa Liona. Ricochet will defend his title against Dalton Castle at ROH Final Battle on Friday. Ricochet will also be on Collision. Thrilling. ROH exists, but I don’t see how it makes any money.
There was an interview with TNT Champion Mark Briscoe and The Conglomeration. Orange Cassidy faces Roderick Strong in the Continental Classic. Strong said he’s not in The Conglomeration and he’s going to break Orange’s back.
Darby Allin was shown in the hospital getting checked on as a precautionary measure. Allin is not cleared to travel or compete.
Analysis: That dude needs to slow down. The people who run this company and care about Allin need to talk some sense into him.
Continental Classic Gold League: Kyle Fletcher defeated Kevin Knight
This was a great match between two talented young athletes. Kyle is further along than Knight in terms of his status in AEW, but I think Knight needs to be pushed over the next year as he develops more as a character. Knight hit a fantastic springboard clothesline for a two count, and that’s a move he needs to be doing in every match because he got so much height. Knight also hit a DDT on the apron. Knight hit the Coast-to-Coast dropkick. I don’t know why they shot it from the wrong angle. You’re supposed to show the side angle to show how far the guy jumped. Kyle stopped a UFO Splash with knees up and a Powerbomb. Kyle hit a running kick and a Brainbuster for the pinfall win after 13 minutes. I enjoyed this one a lot. (Rating: ***3/4)
Kyle Fletcher is now 2-0 in the Gold League with 6 points in the tournament to lead the way.
Let’s Hear from Don Callis
Don Callis and the Don Callis Family were in the ring for a promo. Josh Alexander and Hechicero brought out bags of money. Don insulted The Young Bucks, who went to the ring and beat up the Don Callis Family guys. They hit the BTE Trigger on Fletcher. Kazuchika Okada hit a Rainmaker on Matt Jackson. Josh and Hechicero attacked Nick from behind. Luchasaurus and Jack Perry made the save for the Bucks. Jack hit an impressive moonsault off the top to the floor. Okada kicked Luchasaurus in the groin and Jack bit Okada’s middle finger. More members of the Don Callis Family attacked the faces. Even Callis punched Matt repeatedly. That led to Kenny Omega finally showing up. Omega hit a Snapdragon Suplex on Okada, but then Okada avoided a V-Trigger knee. The Callis Family still has the bags of money as if people would really carry around bags of money for weeks at a time.
Analysis: This will probably lead to a 10-man tag team match with Jurassic Express, Young Bucks and Kenny Omega against five members of the Don Callis Family. I can also see the Young Bucks and Omega as a Trios again. Kenny took his time to get out there. Must have been a good video game session backstage.
A video aired about the Babes of Wrath team of Willow Nightingale and Harley Cameron talking about how they are ready in the finals of the Women’s Tag Team Title tournament.
AEW Women’s Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals Hardcore Holiday Death Match: Timeless Love Bombs – “Timeless” Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa defeated Mega Problems – Megan Bayne and Marina Shafir
It’s AEW, so it was a match full of weapons. Marina Shafir bladed about a minute into the match after taking a champagne bottle to the head. They messed up a double suplex spot and the crowd went silent after it. Bayne tossed Mina over the top onto Storm & Mina on the floor. The heels were in control for a few minutes until Mina hit a dropkick into a chair and Storm hit a Storm Zero on Bayne from the apron through a table on the floor. Mina used a pool cue to Mina’s face to get out of a submission move. Storm and Mina had to wait for Shafir to go on the right side of the ring so that Mina could hit a dive. It looked too choreographed. Toni’s butler, Luther, walked out dressed as Santa Claus and had a gift that was a middle finger. Storm hit Shafir with a shoe and the Big Package rollup got the win after 11 minutes. They worked hard, and I appreciate the effort, but the weapons matches are so overdone in AEW at this point. (Rating: ***)
Next week on Dynamite, it’s Timeless Love Bombs against Babes of Wrath in the finals of the AEW Women’s Tag Team Titles tournament.
There were promos from AEW Women’s World Champion Kris Statlander & Jamie Hayter and Skye Blue & Julia Hart to set up a tag team match. Hayter said they can have a chat.
Dark Order was backstage, where they saw “Hangman” Adam Page, who used to be in segments with them in the past. Alex Reynolds told Page not to ruin it for them. Page said that the second this match is over, “they” are his.
Mercedes Mone, the TBS Champion, did an interview with Renee Paquette. It was the usual Mone promo about holding a lot of belts. Anyway, she’s defending the ROH Women’s TV Title against ROH Final Battle on Friday. Yawn.
A video aired about FTR defending the AEW Tag Team Titles against Bang Bang Gang’s Juice Robinson and Austin Gunn.
The AEW Tag Team Champions FTR – Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler, and Stoke did a promo about beating Juice and Austin. Cash said they will always be Billy’s Boy and Mr. Storm (since Juice is married to Toni Storm). Dax said this is just a paycheck for Austin, but it has been Dax’s life for over 20 years. They’ll see them on Collision.
Analysis: Most of the promos on this show have been to promote matches for Collision and ROH, which have much smaller audiences. I understand why AEW does it since more people watch Dynamite, but I don’t think the promos are going to grow the Collision audience.
The Opps – Powerhouse Hobbs, Katsuyori Shibata & Hook defeated Dark Order – Evil Uno, John Silver & Alex Reynolds
I don’t remember the last time Dark Order were on Dynamite. Excalibur called them a “formidable trio,” which is laughable. They used to be on a lot in the first few years of AEW, but in recent years, they haven’t gotten TV time. The Opps attacked Dark Order before the match began. The Opps dominated most of the match. There were some brief moments of offense from DO, but it didn’t last long. Shibata and Hook choked two guys while Hobbs hit a spinebuster on Uno for the pinfall win after about 6 minutes. They went to a break midway through the match, so we only saw about 3 minutes of action. (Rating: **)
After the match, “Hangman” Adam Page attacked The Opps with a chain. Page beat up Shibata and Hobbs while Hook ran away. Page tried a Buckshot Lariat, but security stopped that. Page beat up the security, aka Indy wrestlers. Page hit a Buckshot Lariat on a security guy.
Analysis: The story is okay. Not great.
Don Callis was interviewed by Renee Paquette, with Kazuchika Okada and Kyle Fletcher standing by. Okada took a shot at Konosuke Takeshita, who walked into the screen. Renee asked by Don isn’t putting both legs of the AEW Unified Title up for grabs. Callis said Okada beat Kenny Omega at All In to become the International Title in addition to the Continental Title and now he’s the Unified Title. Callis said he wasn’t an idiot who would put the International Title on the line in the tournament. Kyle said they will bring home the Continental Title. Kyle said that the International Title.
Analysis: This was AEW trying to explain why one guy has three titles, only defends one of them in a tournament, and the others aren’t on the line. It’s so confusing and they have too many titles.
There was a backstage promo from “Hangman” Adam Page, who yelled about how hard he fought to become AEW World Champion again. Page complained about how Hook cost him the World Title. Page said that he will take that championship back, and it will be his. Page said that at Winter is Coming, Page will not be alone against Hobbs & Shibata. Page said you know who is coming for them.
Analysis: That means it’s Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland against Hobbs and Shibata next week on Dynamite.
Continental Classic Blue League: Claudio Castagnoli defeated Jon Moxley
Moxley and Claudio are allies in the Death Riders, which is the group that Moxley leads. Claudio is the CMLL World Heavyweight Champion. Moxley did some eye gouging early in the match even though Claudio is his friend. Claudio hit a backbreaker and they went to a break. After returning from break, Moxley was busted open on the right side of his head. Claudio got a big pop when he did the Big Swing on his buddy Mox. After sending Claudio out of the ring, Moxley hit a suicide dive onto Claudio on the floor. Moxley hit a Cutter, and Claudio hit a lariat as both guys lay on the mat to sell the physicality of the match. Moxley hit The Stomp for a two count. They left the ring again as Claudio hit an uppercut and a leaping double foot stomp. Back in the ring, Claudio hit a Powerbomb for two. Moxley came back with a DDT. It was announced that five minutes remained. Claudio hit a running uppercut, and he pinned Moxley for the pinfall win after 15 minutes. It didn’t have the feel of a classic match to me. They had some hard-hitting moments, but it didn’t really stand out that much as a great match. Still a good TV main event. (Rating: ***1/4)
After the match, Jon Moxley was frustrated about the loss. The show ended there.
Analysis: The story with Jon Moxley is that he keeps losing matches. Moxley used to be the AEW World Champion who won all the time, but lately he’s been losing quite a bit, so the questions will start about whether he can properly lead the Death Riders when he keeps losing matches.
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Three Stars of the Show
- Kyle Fletcher
- Kazuchika Okada
- Claudio Castagnoli
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The Scoreboard
This Week: 7.25 out of 10
Last Week: 7.5
2025 Average: 7.41
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Final Thoughts on AEW Dynamite
A good Dynamite thanks to the in-ring action, but I’d say it felt average most of the way. The Kyle Fletcher-Kevin Knight match was the best, while other matches were pretty solid, like Okada beating Mac and Castagnoli beating Moxley.
Most of the promos were done to promote Dynamite next week, Collision, and ROH shows that few people watch. It was the usual AEW show in this time period, featuring Continental Classic matches throughout the show. The matches are good, of course, but if you’re watching for storylines getting advanced, it feels like the show is lacking in that department.
Next week’s Winter is Coming episode of Dynamite has bigger matches since Samoa Joe is against Eddie Kingston for the AEW World Title, and the first Women’s Tag Team Champions will be crowned.
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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: [email protected]
Twitter/X: @johnreport