SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
AEW is going to Mexico! AEW is going to the UK! And AEW has arrived in Boston for Spring Break Thru! There’s a lot going on right now and the card for this edition of Dynamite looked pretty stacked. There are a lot of intriguing storylines and some big battles to look forward to including two title matches and three Owen Hart tourney matches. Let’s see how they did.
HITS
MERCEDES VS. ATHENA
Full disclosure, I did not want this match on this show. I wanted this match built up and to have the two touch for the first time at All-In. I’ve been calling for AEW to “Free Athena” for months and months. All that said, we got the match on this show. And it did not disappoint. The two had intensity from the start and the crowd was ready. At least for a while. This was a great match and it was frustrating to hear a “Let’s go Celtics” chant, which honestly, was a little disrespectful, however apparently the crowd was reacting to seeing a Celtics player in the audience, so I understand it.
The match was laid out to show that these two were very evenly matched. Not every move was clean, but I thought that made it feel more authentic. They struggled at times with certain spots, but most of the time it made it look, at least to me, that they were fighting against what the other was trying to do. Perhaps it was important to have them have a match like this so the next time they meet, the chemistry would be improved and the match would be smoother and more special.
Even though I am a big Athena fan, I think it was the right move to have Mercedes win this one, since it looks like they are setting up a title vs. title at All-In with Toni Storm. My hope is that AEW continues to keep Athena strong and have her beat some legitimate wrestlers so they can revisit this at a later date.
HURT SYNDICATE (& MJF)
These guys are rolling right now. The crowd is very much behind them. They love to chant “We hurt people!” and Lashley and Benjamin deliver in all aspects. What a dominating and impressive performance against the Gates of Agony that really showcased all they can do in the ring. MVP was great on commentary once again building up his guys while talking up the opponent as well to make the victory more impressive.
I am really liking MJF’s quest to become a member of the group. Both Max and MVP think they are smarter than the other and when the whole thing eventually blows up it should be great TV. Using women to try to sway votes is just so “MJF” because it’s part of his character week after week to demean the women backstage and be a chauvinistic jerk. I would have been fine if they avoided using something you would have seen 25 years ago, but I get what they were trying to do. Outside of that, MJF was on his game and again did not need to resort to low hanging fruit and local sports team insults.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of the Wade Keller Pro Wrestling Post-show covering the latest episode of Dynamite: CLICK HERE (or search “wade Keller” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
OSPREAY VS. TAKESHITA
Wow. What a match. Will Ospreay’s crowd pop was enormous. The fans stood for nearly the entire time. There were amazing spots and near falls. AEW was smart to have just one 90 second commercial break so they were able to keep the momentum the entire way. This was one of the best matches of the year by far and the best TV match in a long time.
It was two of the best in the world at the absolute top of their games putting on a show that only they can provide. The near falls had everyone in the building on the edge of their seats and when the Stormbreaker finally won it, all you could do was stand (well, they were already standing) and applaud.
Bravo to these two unreal talents.
THE MAIN EVENT
Sure, Jeff Jarrett was likely proud of this overbooked final segment, but I think it worked very well. First, it’s a shame that Hook was unable to be a part of it and I hope he is okay. Second, Powerhouse Hobbs was a smart replacement and you can never go wrong with Samoa Joe, who is always over with the fans.
Having the Death Riders lose was a smart decision and made for a wild celebration. Yes, there were a lot of moving parts and interference at the end, but all of it made sense in the stories they’ve been telling over the past few weeks. Everyone who was a part of it got great reactions, from the booing of the Bucks to the eruption of the crowd when Swerve Strickland thwarted the Bucks’ plans.
The celebration in the ring at the end was a nice cherry on top to the company outlasting Nitro on Turner networks.
QUICK HITS
– I know it was from Collision last week, but I had to shout out Toni Storm for her promo talking about the contenders in the Owen Hart tourney. It was pure gold.
– “Hangman” Page was impressive as usual in his match against the debuting Josh Alexander, but I have to say I wasn’t wowed by Alexander in his first match in AEW. By no means would I call it a “Miss”, but I would call it solid, and not spectacular. I also wasn’t wild about a second straight leverage pin. It would have been better had Hangman won with the buckshot lariat. Alexander may have a great career in AEW, but I didn’t see enough from him to differentiate from a number of other wrestlers on the roster. I was also hoping for someone different to join the Callis family rather than Alexander, but time will tell. I certainly can’t wait for Hangman and Fletcher in the semis!
– I’m very intrigued by the new direction of the Patriarchy. For the first time in months, I’m excited to see what is coming up next with Nick Wayne and Christian.
– What a great venue to have this show in. The crowd was one of the main highlights of this amazing two hours. The multi-leveled building looked so cool as the fans seemed to be right on top of all the action. It’s a no-brainer to return to that venue in the future.
MISSES
No “misses”! Great show!!
This was clearly one of the better Dynamite’s I can remember and left me with a feeling that I haven’t felt in a while. It felt like a hot product. I have tickets for Dynamite in Detroit in three weeks and if they can come close to bringing that feeling to the Motor City, I can’t wait to be a part of it.
Don’t forget to check out the weekly free podcast I’m part of, “The All Elite Conversation Club” that typically drops on Fridays the PWTorch Dailycast lineup. Joel Dehnel and I have a great time breaking down all things AEW! Search “pwtorch” on your podcast app to subscribe. Send questions and comments to allelitecc@gmail.com.
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