AEW DYNAMITE HITS & MISSES (9/25): Danielson vs. McGuinness, Mox vs. Darby, MVP in the House, Retiring the FTW Title, Callis’s screwdriver, Christian’s tease

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In one of the company’s biggest Dynamite episodes of the year, I was very excited to tune in despite what I would call a sub par build. I expected some great matches, storylines and perhaps a surprise. Here’s how it went down.

HITS

DANIELSON VS. MCGUINNESS – THE MATCH

There was nothing that could have been done about the build to this point, but the match itself was very well done. It was unique to AEW to have a technical wrestling match like that and you could tell immediately the two did not lose their chemistry in the ring. It took a few minutes for them to get going, but once they did, they told a fantastic story. It kicked into high gear about 12 minutes in, and the crowd responded.

Danielson overcoming his injured forearm just enough to get a submission was strong and Nigel’s “Thank you” while tapping was a nice cap to what was likely their last match against each other.

Also, having Jim Ross on commentary for this match was a great idea and added a lot.

RETIRING THE FTW TITLE

Sure, most of us would prefer less titles in AEW, but this was more than that. Hook is coming along as a wrestler and the touching moment of him retiring the belt was very well done. I certainly felt the emotion coming from him and Taz as well.

TAG TITLE MATCH

As expected, this was a great match from all four participants. It has been a while since I was on the edge of my seat for some amazing near falls where I really thought they might change the titles. The crowd was way into the match as it went along and AEW has two huge stars on their hands with Will Ospreay and Kyle Fletcher, who can be friends or rivals for many years to come. The Bucks played their role well in this one and continue to come across as annoying heels that always find a way to keep their titles. When they eventually lose them, it should be a big moment.

The finish of the match set up an intriguing story with Ospreay and Fletcher, which should play out over the next few weeks.

MVP IN THE HOUSE

Here was your surprise of the night and it was effective. MVP still crushes it on the mic and this seems like the perfect role for him. It makes perfect sense he would come in and try and steal Swerve from Prince Nana. I’m excited for what is to come from MVP and the stable he will likely put together. Nana showed some seriousness as well which was much needed for his character. He was called out for his dancing and selling coffee and now it’s up to him to get more focused on leading Swerve back to the top or he may lose him.

MOX VS. DARBY

As expected, this was a physical beatdown of a match that showcased the brutality of Moxley with the underdog Darby fighting from underneath and not giving up until he was finally put away. The lack of violence in the show up to this point made the physicality in this match really stand out and made it more effective.

This match included some great camera work getting right in on Darby’s face and seeing him nearly choked out and then getting that fire to escape. The “You can’t kill him” chants from the crowd showed how into it they were and how Darby will easily be able to overcome this loss. If he eventually wins a major title, it’ll be a huge moment.

Danielson running out for revenge at the end was much needed as we hadn’t heard anything from him since the end of All Out. The title match at Wrestledream should have plenty of emotion with a proper build.

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)

MISSES

BUILD FOR DANIELSON-MCGUINNESS

As noted above, the match was great, but it was a missed opportunity to make this a must-see for everybody. It was disappointing. It’s been said for weeks, but for those who were not aware of all the history between the two didn’t get as much out of this match as they could have if they didn’t have to rush it for whatever reason.

CHRISTIAN’S TEASE

This 30 seconds just wasn’t needed. We don’t need a reminder that Christian has a contract and the fact that he just couldn’t just grab another pen from anyone at ringside made this just silly.

CALLIS’S SCREWDRIVER

I’m ready for this screwdriver thing to end. Please pick another weapon as stabbing someone with a screwdriver is not an effective way to tease violence. Some good old brass knuckles or other foreign objects would work much better.

For more on my thoughts, check out the Wade Keller Post-Show from after Dynamite last night as I was fortunate enough to join Wade to chat about the show. And 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. Search “pwtorch” on your podcast app to subscribe. Send questions and comments to allelitecc@gmail.com.

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OR CHECK THIS OUT AT PROWRESTLING.NET: Powell’s AEW Dynamite Hit List: Grand Slam featuring Jon Moxley vs. Darby Allin for a shot at the AEW World Championship, and Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness in a non-title match