AEW DYNAMITE HITS & MISSES 3/4: Moxley-Jericho promo, SCU & Colt vs. Dark Order, Big Solve vs. Leva Bates, Cody’s promo, MJF promo, Pac vs. Taylor, Hager vs. Q.T. Marshall

All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite
March 4, 2020
Denver, Colorado
Aired on TNT

•Jon Moxley-Chris Jericho Promo – HIT: Solid championship promo from Jon Moxley. He feels sincere when he says the championship belongs to the fans. Chris Jericho came out accompanied by The Inner Circle and claimed that he is still “Le Champion”. They set up the main event nicely with Jericho claiming that if Moxley could walk out of here tonight, he would be taking a hiatus. Leading the fans to believe that it was inevitable that Jericho would win since he just lost the championship before he is set to go on tour with Fozzy. It feels like they are leaving the door open for a rematch with Jericho while also laying the groundwork for new challengers throughout the war of the show.

•SCU & Colt Cabana vs. Dark Order – HIT: Not a lot to this match, but a good showing for Colt Cabana. Cabana has been everywhere and done so much in his career. To finally be a part of a regular weekly television show on a prominent network is well deserved and long overdue. He’ll be a great addition to the roster as a fan favorite and veteran leader. With all the buzz on social media and Matt Hardy’s recent WWE departure, I thought the identity of the exalted one would be revealed. AEW has been overt with the connections to Hardy and The Dark Order. It could be AEW wanting to hit people over the head with it so that Hardy gets the desired reaction. As opposed to when Dark Order debuted to chants of “who are you?”.

•Big Swole vs. Leva Bates – HIT: Britt Baker is still very good on commentary. She’s filling her new role better than anyone expected. If the crowd reaction from her dark match at Revolution is any indicator, she’s going to have a great amount of heat for her matches. The match wasn’t crisp, but a nice quick win for Swole. While the Librarian gimmick irritates some, having Leva Bates and Peter Avalon in job roles is a fine way to get them on the show without trying to make the view take them seriously.

•Cody Promo – HIT: With all the talk about his neck tattoo, Cody rebounded with another signature promo. He addressed the loss to MJF by putting the feud to rest for the immediate future. Jake Roberts made a surprise appearance. He spoke prophetically about his new client and what’s in-store for Cody. Roberts still has a lot to give on the mic and has always wanted to work with younger talent. AEW nixed the advertised appearance on Lance Archer due to creative changes so one can speculate that either Archer or free agent Brodie Lee (formerly Luke Harper) could be Robert’s client.

•Pac vs. Chuck Taylor – HIT: Pac can have a good match with anyone. The Lucha Bros joining Pac to create The Death Triangle is a team-up I didn’t imagine. It’s an interesting turn for them which will surely lead to incredible matches. Orange Cassidy looks to have more of an in-ring role going forward. He’s a unique personality and an entertaining worker who could be a draw on Dynamite if used sparingly.

•Jake Hager vs. QT Marshall – MISS: Not a good match. One of the few times on Dynamite that fans were disengaged with the action in the ring. Jake Hager looked totally out of gas just a few minutes in. Hager is playing a role that fits him better as the silent heavy, but he’s is going to have a tough go of it in a promotion where being a top worker or having a super personality are king.

•Post-match brawl – HIT: What was a bad match, turned into a good post match brawl. Hangman still has his beef with The Young Bucks, but it’s tough to argue he isn’t one of their top faces already. He plays to the crowd and went around ringside collecting beers. Wrestling fans have always had an affection for beer drinking wrestlers like The Crusher and Steve Austin. It’s still ambiguous as to where the story is heading, but after Hangman’s performance on Saturday he feels like a made man.

•MJF Promo -HIT: MJF is so damn good. He continues to borrow from “old school wrestling” with his “I Pinned Cody” t-shirt. He even joined in on the hate for Cody’s neck tattoo. MJF expresses his desire to become the number one contender for the AEW Championship. It was hard to imagine him in the main event of a major show because he’s not the athletic worker like many on the roster. But he doesn’t need to be. MJF delivers a main event promo at the age of 23. It’s also believable that he could have the rocket strapped to him and take title from Moxley with a wealth of baby face challengers.

•Jon Moxley & Darby Allin vs. Chris Jericho & Sammy Guevara – HIT: Of course Jericho would want to get the advantage on Jon Moxley, but shouldn’t Darby Allin help his partner? Allin stood at ringside while witnessing his partner getting destroyed on the titantron. Dispute this, Allin had a nice match with several believable near falls. After Allin took defeat, Moxley limped down to the ring before getting beat down again. After looking like they had a built in excuse for Jericho to take time off for the forthcoming Fozzy tour, Jericho won’t be leaving after all. Jericho has been one of the biggest keys to AEW’s success thus far so retaining him during the tour is a big win.

RECOMMENDED: 3/4 AEW DYNAMITE TV REPORT: Keller’s report on Moxley & Darby vs. Jericho & Guevara, So Cal Uncensored & Colt Cabana vs. Dark Order, Pac vs. Chucky T