{"id":209159,"date":"2025-12-23T12:45:37","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T18:45:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=209159"},"modified":"2025-12-23T12:46:04","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T18:46:04","slug":"aew-top-promos-of-the-week-samoa-joe-swerve-strickland-hangman-page-mjf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2025\/12\/23\/aew-top-promos-of-the-week-samoa-joe-swerve-strickland-hangman-page-mjf\/","title":{"rendered":"AEW TOP PROMOS OF THE WEEK: Breaking down what works (and didn&#8217;t work) with Samoa Joe-Swerve Strickland-Hangman Page-MJF, Kingston, and Moxley"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-405381153\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><h3><strong>Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland, \u201cHangman\u201d Adam Page, and MJF \u2013 Dynamite 12\/17\/25<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>There is a lot to unpack here so I\u2019m going to break it down by talking about each of the participants individually. When Hangman lost the title to Samoa Joe, I said that I strongly disagreed with the decision unless this was leading to an MJF return and a possible MJF-Swerve rivalry to take us into the spring. That is what I hope is happening here.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019d have Swerve hit his finisher on Samoa Joe or Hangman, make it look like he\u2019s about to win the title, and then at the last second have MJF slide in and steal the pin from him somehow. Put the title on MJF and now we have the ultimate heel champion going up against a roster full of strong baby aces&#8230; to hopefully the eventual return of Will Ospreay.<\/p>\n<p><strong>MJF:<\/strong> When MJF\u2019s entrance music hit and the crowd started singing the \u201cDa, Na, Na\u201d part of the song it was like when John Travolta hit Uma Thurman with that adrenaline shot in \u201c Pulp Fiction.\u201d This match and storyline desperately needed that shot and boy did MJF deliver.<\/p>\n<p>I could have done without the WWE reference and the \u201cSloppy Joe\u201d line reminds me of something The Rock would say (and then do a documentary about how he came up with it). It\u2019s a lame line and MJF is too good for that. I loved that right off the top, MJF gave his reasoning for wanting to join the 4-way match. It goes against his character to do things that make it harder for him to win the title and his reasoning made sense.<\/p>\n<p>I had just watched the P. Diddy documentary on Netflix, so the Diddy line he hit on Swerve was a tough one. He also cooked Swerve with the \u201cTwerk for Top Dolla\u201d line. It was so bad that I almost wished Swerve had gone after him. I thought it was a bad look for Swerve to just sit there and let MJF dump all over him. I also really loved when MJF purposely walked towards Hangman when he talked about being the best \u201cHomegrown\u201d star in AEW. His line about Samoa Joe, Hangman, and Swerve being \u201c very messy tenants\u201d was also a great line.<\/p>\n<p>There is just no one better at running down his opponent\u2019s than MJF. He still needs to be reeled in sometimes and his promos like this one would hit a little harder if he had some editing, but man was it great to have him back.<\/p>\n<p>I wish we had more than two weeks to build up to this match now that MJF is involved due to the great promos we could get out of this, but this match will be great and I\u2019m hoping MJF gets the title because I think a little refresh of the title scene is just what AEW needs right now.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Samoa Joe:<\/strong> I\u2019m convinced that Samoa Joe knows that people are heavily criticizing his promos during this Hangman feud because he keeps going back to yelling at the crowd and insulting the crowd every week. He is trolling us now. There is no other reason he\u2019d keep doing the lame \u201cthis town is dumb\u201d shtick. Also, someone must stop Hook from dressing like a teenager. It is the least intimidating look I\u2019ve ever seen on a guy who could look intimidating if he just switched up his wardrobe.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-805522057\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><strong>Swerve Strickland:<\/strong> I didn\u2019t think Swerve had a strong showing in this promo battle and I thought he spent too much time trying to get over new catchphrases \u201cGod body\u201d and \u201c Hard-body Swerve.\u201d I also didn\u2019t understand his final line of \u201cYou can\u2019t kill a god with bullets.\u201d No one is shooting him, so it just made no sense.<\/p>\n<p>I almost felt like he knew MJF was coming out so he was trying to hit as many one-liners as possible so he could compete with what MJF was about to do. I also didn\u2019t think the \u201cfake tattoo\u201d line on Samoa Joe hit the way he thought it would. I mean, we are bringing up things from 18 years ago now. I\u2019m a huge Swerve fan, but this just didn\u2019t work for me this week.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u201cHangman\u201d Adam Page:<\/strong> This went a little long for me, but other than MJF, this was my second-favorite part of this segment. I thought Hangman brought a lot of passion to this promo, and he didn\u2019t scream as much so that was also a plus. Hangman has this cadence that he talks with that, when he\u2019s not screaming, can really draw you in. He\u2019s very good at making you feel the emotions he is feeling as well. I liked him going back to Samoa Joe telling him he has become the very thing he was trying to beat against the Death Riders. I also like the emphasis he put on the line, \u201cYou turned to Hook.\u201d The way he delivered it was like \u201cReally, this guy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW&#8230;<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Check out the latest episode of the &#8220;All Elite Conversation Club&#8221; with Joel Dehnel and Gregg Kanner, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spreaker.com\/episode\/all-elite-conversation-club-dehnel-kanner-discuss-mjf-added-to-four-way-world-title-picture-c2-developments-more--69144697\">CLICK HERE<\/a> to stream (or search \u201cpwtorch\u201d on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"All Elite Conversation Club - Dehnel &amp; Kanner discuss MJF added to Four-Way World Title picture, C2 developments, more\" src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?episode_id=69144697&amp;theme=light&amp;playlist=false&amp;playlist-continuous=false&amp;chapters-image=true&amp;episode_image_position=right&amp;hide-logo=false&amp;hide-likes=false&amp;hide-comments=false&amp;hide-sharing=false&amp;hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>=<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Jon Moxley \u2013 Collision 12\/14\/25<\/h3>\n<p>If you had told me a couple months ago that Jon Moxley would be cutting underdog, babyface promos while he was still a member of The Death Riders, I would have thought you were crazy. Well, he is, and it\u2019s awesome.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s the no. 1 babyface in the company right now, I think. I loved him talking about the Continental Classic and how its \u201csimple\u201d is \u201c measured in guts and effort\u201d and how he pushes people and how that can turn people into \u201cmonsters.\u201d This guy is talking about how he\u2019s on an \u201cuphill climb\u201d and that he \u201cleft it all out there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I was waiting for him to pull out a Death Riders \u201c Never Give Up\u201d towel at the end of this promo. It\u2019s incredible character work he\u2019s doing. He has become my favorite part of the Continental Classic. I also think other than Kyle Fletcher he\u2019s having the best matches of the tournament. I hope people are really appreciating the work he\u2019s putting in right now.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1790144840\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Eddie Kingston \u2013 Dynamite 12\/14\/25<\/h3>\n<p>This was a short but very effective promo in my eyes. Listen, it would really take a lot for the fans not to be behind Eddie Kingston and, after this 1 minute promo, you could hear the fans in the arena chanting \u201cEddie! Eddie! Eddie!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I loved Eddie just being like, &#8220;Yeah, I lost, but I\u2019m never going to stop. I learned in my loss to Joe and now I feel bad for whoever is next.&#8221; Eddie Kingston is like the tide. He\u2019s never going to stop coming. This was just such an effective promo to help his character. Samoa Joe\u2019s whole premise to Kingston was that \u201cyou always lose the big one.\u201d Then Eddie lost another \u201cBig One.\u201d I just thought this was a great way to move Eddie\u2019s character past another big loss. He lost, he learned, and now he\u2019s going to use that loss to adapt and not make the same mistakes again. Wrestling is at its best when it\u2019s at its most simple like this.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Wade Keller Post-show (12\/17) - AEW Dynamite w\/Keller &amp; Buhagiar\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8Jv4RSRNTEA?start=14&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-3124649233\"><div id=\"pwtor-1316380267\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland, \u201cHangman\u201d Adam Page, and MJF \u2013 Dynamite 12\/17\/25 There is a lot to unpack here so I\u2019m going to break it down by talking about each of the participants individually. When <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2025\/12\/23\/aew-top-promos-of-the-week-samoa-joe-swerve-strickland-hangman-page-mjf\/\" title=\"AEW TOP PROMOS OF THE WEEK: Breaking down what works (and didn&#8217;t work) with Samoa Joe-Swerve Strickland-Hangman Page-MJF, Kingston, and Moxley\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":209162,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,27,4488],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-209159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-specialists","category-top-five-lists"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2025\/12\/Screenshot-2025-12-23-at-12.38.38-PM.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=209159"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209159\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":209164,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/209159\/revisions\/209164"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/209162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=209159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=209159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=209159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}