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AEW DYNAMITE REPORT
“HOLIDAY BASH”
DECEMBER 18, 2024
WASHINGTON D.C. AT THE ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS ARENA
AIRED LIVE ON TBS
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness
Ring Announcer: Justin Roberts
Attendance: WrestleTix reports tonight that 2,809 tickets had been distributed shortly before showtime. The arena has a capacity of 4,222 spectators when configured for concerts.
JOIN US LIVE ON YOUTUBE TONIGHT FOR THE VIDEO-FORMAT OF OUR LIVE POST-SHOWS…
PWTorch editor Wade Keller and PWTorch’s Chris Lansdell to review AEW Dynamite LIVE tonight right after Dynamite. Join us and let us know your thoughts on Dynamite during the show.
Email our post-show at wadekellerpodcast@gmail.com with your comments and questions about Dynamite. We’ll read your emails live during the post-show.
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[HOUR ONE]
-They cut right to the arena with cheering fans as Excalibur introduced the show,. Then they showed Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, Pac, Claudio Castagnoli, and Marina Shafir walking outside the arena. Tony Schiavone touted the main event six-man tag match with three of them.
-Renee Paquette asked Jay White and Orange Cassidy if they’re more focused on their Death Rider opponents or dealing with trust issues with each other. White said Orange Cassidy gave them a pep talk, so OC is talked out. He said his focus is on the AEW World Title, but he has to first make it to Worlds End which means relying on people he normally wouldn’t. He said he isn’t stupid enough to trust “Hangman” Page, though. He said he is the one person they don’t need on their team because he is only good at letting himself and others around him down. In walked Hangman, who said Mox is his, not theirs tonight. He stormed off. White flipped out and followed him. Renee held the mic for OC, but he just exhaled and walked away.
-Excalibur plugged Darby vs. Ospreay and noted it’s a first-ever one-on-one match for them.
-A brief soundbite aired with Darby simply saying, “Will Ospreay, it’s showtime.”
-A brief soundbite aired with Ospreay who said they’re about to witness an elite dream match tonight. He said he will show Darby why he is on another level.
-Excalibur reviewed the scorecard for the Continental Classic and he plugged Shelton Benjamin vs. The Beast Mortos would also take place.
-They showed MJF walking backstage, chomping on gum and looking at his phone. Excalibur said they’d hear from him later. Exaclibur plugged the Christian Cage tag match later also.
(Keller’s Analysis: First of all, they showed off a crowd of fewer 3,000 people in the best way possible with a couple really smart camera angles that created a sense of a high-energy intimate passionate setting. I really liked this use of the opening five minutes of the show, packing in a crowd shot, hype for the main event including an interview with one of the teams, stage-setting with promos for the top tournament match, and a full overview of the top segments. I wouldn’t have gone a second longer as it was pushing it in terms of content not in the ring in front of the crowd, but this was a smart way to set the stage and build anticipation.)
(1) MERCEDES MONE vs. ANNA JAY – TBS Title match
Mercedes made her ring entrance first. Excalibur commented on Mercedes winning a New Japan Strong match last weekend followed by Nina Shirakawa walking out and having a dance-off with Mercedes. (An unfortunate crowd shot showed more empty than occupied seats as Mercedes celebrated her win.) Then Anna Jay made her entrance. Justin Roberts did formal mid-ring introductions.
The bell rang 8 minutes into the hour. Excalibur talked about how few matches Anna Jay has had outside of AEW and how she left her “bubble” and comfort zone by going to Japan. Mercedes went for a top rope frog splash at 2:00. Anna moved and then gave Mercedes a flipping neckbreaker for a two count. There was a dueling chant of “Let’s Go Anna! / CEO!” After Mercedes scored a two count after a meteora, they cut to a break at 3:00. [c/db]
Back from the break, Anna avoided a charging Mercedes in the corner and landed a neckbreaker for a two count. Anna Jay applied a sleeper with body scissors. Mercedes flailed, but she bit Anna’s arm to break. Mercedes reached up and pulled Anna to the mat and applied a Statement Maker. Anna leveraged Mercedes’s shoulders down for a one count. Mercedes held on. Anna dragged her to the bottom rope to force a break.
Mercedes landed a sunset bomb into the corner and the a double-knee strike followed by her Money Maker for the three count.
As Mercedes celebrated, they showed Kris Statlander watching on a monitor backstage with her arms crossed.
WINNER: Mercedes 11:00 to retain the TBS Title.
-Excalibur hyped that Dynanite would begin to simulcast on Max starting Jan. 1.
-They went to FTR sitting on a couch in a living room. Cash said it’s been a few days since “everybody saw what happened to us.” He said it was over nothing because they don’t disagree with them. He said while he doesn’t agree with their mothods, he agreed with them that AEW needs a change, and some need to be forced into change. He said they stopped them from poisoning another man. He said they were left out in the cold on concrete. Dax said they built their whole lives and careers on pro wrestling and they began wondering what would happen if they couldn’t wrestle. He said they haven’t been cleared to wrestle before the end of the year, but they’ll be at Dynamite on Jan. 1 and they will fight the Death Riders. He said they won’t come alone.
(Keller’s Analysis: They showed footage of what happened at the very end of the promo, but half the Dynamite audience didn’t see Collision, so that footage should have aired first. Dax and Cash didn’t even mention that they were talking about the Death Riders until deep into the segment, nor was it mentioned when the announcers threw to the segment. There is no excuse for not setting the stage for this better. I’m not sure what to make of Cash saying they agree with Mox’s point)
-MJF made his ring entrance. He said he doesn’t care about the opinions of “a bunch of disgustings from D.C.” He then insulted the Washington Wizards. (That is the very definition of the lowest hanging fruit and it backfired, as fans chanted “Wizards Suck.”) He said he’s not scrooge. He sang, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” He then touted Hanukkah. He said Santa isn’t real. Matt Mendard on commentary said he hoped his son wasn’t watching. Fans chanted “Santa! Santa!”
He talked about a fundraiser that he started, but he paused because he was tearing up. “It’s a bit much,” said Menard.” Some music played that fit a somber, sympathetic message. He talked about a small child who needs food. He put up an image of Adam Cole, but with it adjusted to make him look thinner and famished. He called him a “freakishly small, yellow bay-bay.” He said they can help by buying the PPV on Dec. 28. He said a part of their PPV purchase wil go fund him putting that child out of his misery. He said for that and because he’s better than them, he can thank them later.
Adam Cole appeared on the big screen. He said he had a meeting with Tony Khan because he knows how badly he wants to get his hands on the diamond ring in their match. He said Matt Taven and Mike Bennett will be by his side to prevent him from getting his hands on it. He said he has no more to run or hid and he is a dead man and he will finally finish it at Worlds End. “Boom,” he said. He stood up to leave, but then said he had somethingelse to say. He then smiled and looked at the camera and asked, “Hey Max, am I kicking your ass yet?” MJF wondered what that meant. The camera showed Cole was standing in the ring. MJF turned around and Cole attacked him with punches and a superkick. MJF scurried out of the ring as Cole took his time climbing to the top rope. Cole’s music played as he walked around the ring.
(Keller’s Analysis: That worked. It’s a cold feud that I think most people wish was over already, but MJF didn’t overdo it and came across as smug and arrogant, even if the Wizards comment was cheap to begin with and backfired badly. Cole carried himself well here.)
-Jamie Hayter cut a promo backstage and talked about Julia Hart attacking her from behind last week. “Message sent,” she said. She said at Fight for the Fallen, she’ll serve her a dish best served cold. “A heathy dose of Haterade.” She kissed her bicep.
-Excalibur said Kenny Omega is nearly recovered and he’ll be competing on Dec. 31 at WrestleDynasty and they hope to see him soon.
-A video aired on Omega.
-They cut back to the crowd with some “Kenny! Kenny!” chants in progress.
-Christian and Hook made their entrance with Mother Wayne and Kip Sabian.
-A commercial aired for the tapings of the Dec. 25 and 31 episodes of Dynamite this weekend in New York at Hammerstein Ballroom.
(2) CHRISTIAN CAGE & NICK WAYNE (w/Kip Sabian, Mother Wayne) vs. HOOK & KATSUYORI SHIBATA
Hook and Shibata made their entrance. They aired a clip of Hook attacking Christian last week. (I stand corrected: I thought Hook used the outside handle to get in after breaking the door window, but he actually did reach through the broken glass and used the inside handle to unlock the door.) The bell rang 38 minutes into the hour. Hook knocked Nick to ringside and then backdropped Christian onto him. Christian and Nick regrouped at ringside. Hook went for Red Rum back in the ring, but Christian interfered from the ring apron. They cut to a double-box break at 4:00. [c/db]
Back from the break, as Wayne and Shibata battled in the ring, Hook fended off Sabian and then suplexed Christian on the mat. Hook put Sabian in Red Rum. As Mother Wayne distracted the ref, Christian raked Shibata’s eyes and gave him a Killswitch. He draped Wayne onto Shibata for a three count.
WINNER: Christian & Wayne in 11:00.
-Excalibur hyped the six-man tag main event and then Cole and MJF face-to-face on Collision this Saturday, plus Claudio Castagnoli vs. Darby Allin, Will Ospreay vs. Ricochet, Mark Briscoe vs. The Beast Mortos, and Daniel Garcia vs. Shelton Benjamin.
-A vignette aired with Chris Jericho in New York City. He said he was once known as King of the World and every king needs a throne and a kingdom to rule. He said there is no better perch to rule the world than NYC. Footage aired of him hanging out in NYC including skating at Rockafeller Center and riding a tour bus and eating pizza and posing for photos with fans while the ROH World Title was draped over his shoulder. He said he’ll be damned if he lets anyone take his crown.
-Excalibur hyped Jericho vs. Matt Cardona on ROH Final Battle this Friday night.
-A brief vignette aired on Bandido’s pending arrival with highlights of some previous matches.
-A commercial aired for AEW merchandise. [c]
-Mariah May admired her Women’s Title belt backstage as she talked about Thunder Rosa. She asked why, when working as a social worker, she decided to become a pro wrestler. She said if it was to make her family proud, that was cute. She said she has eclipsed everyone in AEW for just being her. She said if she was around four years ago, Rosa wouldn’t have even been hired. She told Rosa to bring her father so she can end two generations on one night. She said she won’t be bringing her father to Worlds End because she doesn’t want him to see what she’s going to do.
[HOUR TWO]
-Tony Schiavone introduced Ricochet who made his entrance. Schiavone said he’s noticing a change of attitude and demeanor since the last time they saw him in the ring. He asked Schiavone if his new threads look cool, but he stumbled a bit saying it. He was immediately interrupted by The Hurt Syndicate. As Bobby Lashley, MVP, and Shelton Benjamin walked out, Ricochet gave off a vibe of being unsure and nervous. He backed away as they entered the ring. They surrounded Ricochet. He stammered as he said he’s glad they came out there. He asked if they saw how he beat Kommander and Brody King. MVP said he saw it. Ricochet told Shelton that maybe they’ll end up facing each other if they keep winning. Ricochet said Ospreay will see a different side of him on Saturday. MVP asked to see the business card Ricochet flashed last week. He pulled it out. Lashley grabbed him and held him forcefully as MVP tore up the business card. MVP said, “Nobody likes a kiss ass.” Ricochet left the ring and said he’d talk to them later. MVP then told Shelton he has business to take care of, so hurt somebody.
-Schiavone said that didn’t turn out the way he thought it would.
(Keller’s Analysis: I don’t know where this lands, but right now Ricochet looks terrible. He tried to turn heel and was turned away by the heel faction he wanted to be part of or bond with.)
(3) THE BEAST MORTOS vs. SHELTON BENJAMIN – Continental Classic Tournament Blue League match
MVP joined the commentary table. The bell rang 5 minutes into the hour. Mortos climbed to the top rope and walked the rope before Shelton yanked him down. Mortos crotched himself. Shelton the kneed him to the floor. They cut to an early break.
(Keller’s Analysis: How did no one think of doing that before?!?) [c/db]
Mortos scored a near fall after a powerslam at 5:00. They battled back and forth. Shelton absorbed a head butt and landed a sidekick. He followed with a German suplex series and then landed two running knee strikes. He followed with a Hurt Fall overhead suplex into a powerslam for the three count.
-Afterward, Lashley attacked Mortos. MVP encouraged Shelton to join in. Garcia made his way out and told them to cut his music. He said there are three of them and one of him, and he knows what will happen if he comes to the ring. MVP said that would make him stupid to come to the ring. Garcia said he didn’t care because the people want a fight. Mark Briscoe then came out to his music. They went after Shelton and Shelton. MVP hit Briscoe with his cane on his back. The heels stood over the fallen babyfaces as their music played.
-Exacalibur recapped the latest standings in the Blue League. He then threw to a video package of the Continental Classic matches over the weekend. [c]
-Renee interviewed Ricochet backstage. She asked him to talk about it appearing business is off the table with the Hurt Syndicate. Ricochet said he thought it was going well since they gave him his card, but he’s not going to worry about it. He said he’s focused on the Continental Classic. He said he’s facing Ospreay on Saturday. He said he’s one of the main reasons he came to AEW. He said he wants to shut the world up and beat Ospreay. He let out a high-pitched, “Ah ha!” In walked Swerve Strickland and Prince Nana. Swerve said he thought it was only matter of time until the real Trevor showed his real face. He said he’s known him 14 years and he thought he had changed, but he’s still the same old Trevor, “a follower.” He said that won’t work in Swerve’s House. Ricochet said he knows the real Swerve, and he didn’t win the Continental Classic last year and it’ll eat him up when he wins it this year. He let out a high-pitched, “Ah ha!” Swerve told Nana, “That’s why he’s still bald.” Nana laughed.
-A clip aired from last Wednesday of the return of Toni Storm.
-An interview aired with R.J. City interviewing Toni Storm who said she can’t believe he’s finally made it to AEW, playing into her seemingly having lost all memory of being in AEW before. He said how about being a three-time AEW Women’s Champion. She said humbly it’s too early to be thinking about that. He mentioned Mercedes Moné and she called her an icon. He brought up Mariah May. She said she’s the best in the business today. When he said “Timeless Toni Storm,” Storm said, “No, it’s Toni Time!” She hugged him excitedly and left.
(Keller’s Analysis: I’m loving this. This was well done for what they were trying to do.)
(4) WILL OSPREAY vs. DARBY ALLIN – Continental Classic Tournament Blue League match
The bell rang 30 minutes into the hour. After some back and forth action, Darby set up a Coffin Drop. Ospreay rolled to the ring apron. Darby adjusted his leap and aimed for him on the apron. Ospreay moved and Darby hit the edge of the ring apron. Yikes. The ref checked on him and they cut to a double-box break at 4:00. [c/db]
Darby returned to his feet. Ospreay went on the attack for a couple minutes. He leaped off the top rope with a Cody Red attempt, but Darby moved. Ospreay rolled to his feet and landed a Hidden Blade. Darby countered a double underhook slam into a sunset bomb for a near fall at 9:00. The fans popped big. They replayed it.
A few minutes later, Ospreay set up a Styles Clash on the ring apron. He turned and executed it off the ring apron to ringside. Ospreay sat up and clutched his knee in pain. He winced as the ref checked on him. Darby was out on his face. Fans chanted “Holy shit!” As they recovered, fans chanted, “Fight forever!” and “You killed Darby!” The ref began to count out Darby, but he beat the count. Ospreay then landed a sudden OsCutter for a near fall at 13:00.
Ospreay then set up a Storm Breaker, but Darby countered into a Scorpion Death Drop. He followed with a top rope Coffin Drop. He landed a second one on Ospreay’s chest and scored a three count.
WINNER: Darby in 15:00 to earn three points in the Blue League.
(Keller’s Analysis: Wow. Just wild action, some of it seeming extra risky, as usual with these two. A big win for Darby getting him to six points and redeeming his loss to Brody King, while Ospreay is stuck at six points after three matches.)
-Afterward, the Claudio walked out to the Death Rider theme and stared down Darby. Claudio was joined by the rest of the Death Rider. [c]
(5) “SWITCHBLADE” JAY WHITE & ORANGE CASSIDY & “HANGMAN” ADAM PAGE vs. JON MOXLEY & WHEELER YUTA & PAC (w/Claudio Castagnoli, Marina Shafir)
The bell rang 52 minutes into the hour. Hangman and White weren’t on the same page before the bell rang over who would start. Hangman started, but then tagged in Cassidy right away and stared down White. Cassidy got in some offense on Yuta. Mox took a cheap shot at Cassidy at ringside. White reached out to tag Cassidy, but then pulled his hand back. Hangman went face to face with Shafir at ringside. Hangman called for Hangman to tag in seconds later. White tagged Hangman’s back and entered. Hangman was angry and walked to the back. Claudio gave a groggy Cassidy an uppercut at ringside. [c]
[OVERRUN]
White had no one left to tag after the break and took an extended beating. Cassidy finally made his back to standign in his corner and tagged in. He rallied against Mox and landed a tornado DDT. Yuta tagged in and gave Cassidy a German suplex. White entered and suplexed Yuta out of the ring, then charged at Pac, who kicked him. Cassidy met Pac on the top rope and superplexed him.
Cassidy countered a Paradigm Shift. Mox countered a Cassidy attempt at an Orange Punch with a cutter. Hangman returned and went after Mox. As he set up a Buckshot Lariat, Cassidy instead landed an Orange Punch on Mox. Hangman was upset. Hangman raged at Cassidy. Pac grabbed at Hangman’s leg. Yuta shoved Cassidy into Hangman, knocking him off the ring apron. Hangman then went for a Buckshot that seemed destined for Orange, but Orange moved so it took out Yuta instead. White then gave Pac a Blade Runner. He told Hangman to pin him. As Hangman and White argued, Mox slid into the ring and rolled up Cassidy for the three count. Schiavone said White and Hangman have no one to blame but themselves.
Cassidy shoved White and Hangma, who went back to argued with each other. Mox, Claudio, and Pac climbed onto the ring apron. White, Hangman, and Cassidy stopped bickering and went at the heel trio. They brawled to ringside. Cassidy hit Pac with an Orange Punch. Mox fled with Shafir as Hangman pursued them. White threw Yuta into the ringside barricade. Schiavone said Mox is counting on his three opponents at Worlds End not being on the same page.
WINNERS: Death Riders in 13:00.
JOIN US LIVE ON YOUTUBE TONIGHT FOR THE VIDEO-FORMAT OF OUR LIVE POST-SHOWS…
PWTorch editor Wade Keller and PWTorch’s Chris Lansdell to review AEW Dynamite LIVE tonight right after Dynamite. Join us and let us know your thoughts on Dynamite during the show.
Email our post-show at wadekellerpodcast@gmail.com with your comments and questions about Dynamite. We’ll read your emails live during the post-show.
Subscribe to all of our free podcasts by searching “wade keller” and “pwtorch” in your podcast app of choice including Spotify and Apple Podcasts and most other iOS and Android apps.
LIVE ON YOUTUBE RIGHT AFTER AEW DYNAMITE TONIGHT: CLICK HERE TO WATCH
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