3/17 AEW DYNAMITE TV REPORT: Keller’s report on Baker vs. Thunder Rosa, Gallows & Anderson vs. Moxley & Kingston, Cody vs. Penta

AEW DYNAMITE TV REPORT
“ST. PATRICK’S DAY SLAM”
MARCH 17, 2021
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. AT DAILY’S PLACE
AIRED ON TNT
REPORT BY WADE KELLER, PWTORCH EDITOR

Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

Ring Announcer: Justin Roberts

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[HOUR ONE]

-The AEW Dynamite opening theme aired.

-They showed MJF, Tully Blanchard, FTR, Wardlow, and Shawn Spears departing a private jet and getting into a limo after posing in the wind, with most sporting sunglasses and nice suits.

(1) CODY RHODES (w/Arn Anderson) vs. PENTA EL ZERO MIEDO

An inset soundbite aired with Penta and his smarmy interpreter during ring introductions. The interpreter smiled and said, “Cody, Penta says he’s going to break your arm and you’re going to have to take an early paternity leave.” Ross said Penta’s interpreter, Alex, appears to be having too much fun. Schiavone said he’s got quite the smirk. They aired a clip of Penta hitting Cody with a chair to knock him off the ladder at Revolution.

Penta flip dove over the top rope and took it to Cody at the start. They ended up fighting at ringside in the opening minute. Penta ended up taking control and then went to ringside and leaned a ringside barricade segment against an upright part of the barricade segment. Cody went after him. They fought back into the ring where Cody met Penta on the top rope and executed a top rope huracanrana. The announcers hyped other scheduled matches and follow-up on the MJF-Inner Circle match. Cody landed a Disaster Kick to knock Penta to the floor, then dove through the ropes and speared Penta into the ring barricade segment leaning at ringside. Ross said Cody is doing things, given his sore shoulder, that might not be sound judgment, but he’s determined. Penta poked Cody’s eyes, but then Cody caught him with a thrust kick and a quick Canadian Destroyer. Then he hit a Cody Cutter for a believable near fall. Cody pounded the mat in frustration.

Cody slammed Penta’s leg knee-first into the ringpost, then threw him back into the ring. He then applied a figure-four leglock. Penta teased tapping for about ten seconds, but then reached the bottom rope to force a break. Penta countered Cody into a shoulder lock and snapped back. Cody sunset-flipped Penta and got a leverage three count. Ross said Penta wasn’t expecting that roll-up.

WINNER: Cody in 12:00.

-Penta attacked Cody after the bell. Arn entered the ring. Dustin Rhodes and The Gunn Club ran out chased Penta out of the ring. Penta regrouped at ringside and stuck his tongue out at Cody and waved his index finger at him. Then Q.T. Marshall came out. Schiavone said everyone in the ring is wondering what took him so long to come out to help.

(Keller’s Analysis: Really good match. I liked Cody’s winning, but Penta attacking him afterward to justify a continuation of the rivalry. I am just fine with Cody getting a win there. I could live with Penta getting a win since they’re at the start of pushing him as a top level singles heel, but I also get picking and choosing Cody losses so they have the most impact, and this wasn’t a necessary job in order to still continue the feud. I doubt there’s much emotional investment in the Q.T. Marshall storyline from 99.9 percent of viewers, but AEW seems committed to seeing it through.)

-The announcers hyped upcoming matches on the show plus interviews with Darby & Sting and Christian. Then they threw to a backstage interview with The Young Bucks.

-Alex Marvez interviewed Nick & Matt Jackson. He asked about Rey Fenix & Pac earning a tag team title shot. Matt cut a basic promo about being the best damn tag team, dismissing Fenix’s wins over them in singles matches. Don Callis barged in and said he was just there to check on their dad since they heard he got hurt. He admitted he pretended they kicked him, but they wished they had kicked him. He said he wanted to see the old Bucks in Japan. He said they founded this place, but there’s nothing elite about them anymore. He said they’ve killed their careers, and Kenny Omega doesn’t even know them anymore. Matt told Callis that he changed Kenny, their best friend. Callis said Kenny has changed because he’s become a wrestling god, whereas the Bucks are living off of their names. He asked if they’re the same Matt & Nick he saw in New Japan.

(Keller’s Analysis: I really liked that segment. Grounding the show with backstage interviews with a mic-holder like Marvez is a throwback, but it’s something AEW could utilize more to good effect. Callis was really good here, not wanting the Penta interpreter to steal his thunder as the most smarmy guy on the show.)

-Excalibur said Callis was living up to his name as “human garbage.” He pivoted to hyping Jade Cargill in action next. [c]

(2) JADE CARGILL vs. DANI JORDYN

They exchanged bicep flexes. Jordyn threw a back elbow, but Cargill caught her with a boot to the face when she charged. Ross said this is her second-ever match. She delivered a released German suplex next, then kipped up. Then she hit her finisher for the win. After the match, Jade taunted Red Velvet at ringside. Velvet took a swing, but Jade moved out of the way. The announcers gushed about her debut singles victory on Dynamite.

WINNER: Cargill in 2:00.

(Keller’s Analysis: Good debut, but very limited in what she showed. What’s undeniable is her presence and star power. As a good athlete, there’s reason to believe she’ll get good in the ring if she works really hard and can learn some of the intangibles that go beyond doing cool moves.)

-The announcers commented over highlights of MJF & Co. attacking Inner Circle last week. Excalibur said very early on last year, MJF was at ringside with Shawn Spears gambling in the crowd, and he wondered if that was the genesis of this relationship.

-MJF’s music played and he led Tully, FTR, Spears, and Wardlow to the ring. Tully spoke first and reminisced about what they did to each Inner Circle member last week, and compared his new group to “the greatest group of guys” he was around 34 years ago. He said he will finish his career with this new greatest group. “You can mark my words,” he said.

MJF said, “Well, I guess I am Judas now, huh?” He addressed Chris Jericho. He said pretending to like him for six months wasn’t a walk in the park. He said every time Jericho talked, he had to stand back “about as far as your hairline.” He said he and Sammy Guevera stood about as far apart from each other as “oh, I don’t know, your left pec and your right.” He said he sang and danced and pretended to like him “and your comedy bullshit.” He said it worked, because Jericho believed he was taking him under his wing, but in reality, he was plucking him feather by feather. He said he made people believe he wanted to take over the Inner Circle, but that was a ruse. He said all along he wanted to defeat and end the strongest faction in all of AEW “and on top of its remains, I wanted to build one even stronger, and boy have I ever.”

MJF said you might not like this line-up, but you’ve got to look at it. He said Tully described it well as The Pinnacle. He touted each of them one at a time. He called Wardlow the best insurance policy in pro wrestling. He said Spears has been held down too long. He said he’s always been a top guy, and he will prove it. He said if you don’t believe it, take it up with him and you’ll end up eating a chairshot. He then talked about Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood being the only Grand Slam Tag Team Champions in the history of pro wrestling. He touted himself. He said he’s 24 and he’s only going to get better. He said he has 25 good years left. (Was that an intentional dig at Jericho, who just turned 50?)

He said as The Pinnacle, they will take every premiere championship. He said he wants their locker room. “We will take what we want and when we want it,” he said. He closed with: “I’m better than you, and you know it.”

(Keller’s Analysis: That’s on the higher end of the follow-up to last week’s angle. I really liked letting Tully talk first, as he still has gravitas and can cut as good a promo as he ever did. MJF was great, and I really loved not only explaining he always wanted to form his own faction and destroy Inner Circle from within, but keeping things serious and disowning the comedy stuff he was part of over the last six months. This was straight forward and not going for humor or insider comments, and the jokes aimed at Jericho were nasty enough to not have any sympathy for MJF. There’s plenty of room for an Inner Circle rebuttal, but that was a memorable and effective presentation of a new faction.) [c]

(3) PRIVATE PARTY & THE BUTCHER & THE BLADE & MATT HARDY vs. JURASSIC EXPRESS (Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus & Marko Stunt) & BEAR COUNTRY

An inset interview aired with Matt Hardy saying the more money his men make, the more he makes. He said he’s not just building a brand, he’s building an empire. Marko opened against Matt. After some exchanges between Hardy and Jungle Boy, they cut to an early split-screen break. [c/ss]

JB took a beating during the break. He hot-tagged in Luchasaurus who beat up a parade of heels coming at him. Marko tagged himself in and went after Kassidy. The rest of the wrestlers battled at ringside as Kassidy landed a pump kick on Marko. Private Party double-teamed Marko. Marko fought back, but Private Party hit Gin & Juice. Hardy demanded to get tagged in. Schiavone called him a glory hound. He smiled and delivered a Twist of Fate for the win. Ross said Hardy got the glory, but his four teammates did the heavy lifting. At ringside, Bear Country and Jurrasic Express exchanged some heated words.

WINNERS: Hardy & Private Party & Butcher & Blade in 10:00.

(Keller’s Analysis: This was fine.)

-Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston talked backstage. Mox said he’s not in a good mood. He said he should be on a beach somewhere sipping a drink, but he’s got to step up and fix the real problem. Mox mocked The Good Brothers. He said he doesn’t like them at all. He said they’re cheap shot artists. He made fun of Gallows’ eyes, comparing them to the plastic eyes kids glue onto construction paper in pre-school. He called them “googly eyes.” Mox said this isn’t the Impact Zone, this is their home. Eddie asked Mox if it’s legal to say Bullet Club. Mox shrugged and said he doesn’t know. He muttered “forbidden door.” Kingston said the Good Brothers are cowards, and cowards die a thousand deaths, whereas he and Mox are soldiers, and soldiers only die once.

(Keller’s Analysis: There’s undeniable chemistry between those two. Having them riff on the Good Brothers is fun.) [c]

-Dasha interviewed Christian Cage backstage. She asked what brings him to AEW. He said there are wrestlers who bust their ass more than anybody else on the card. “They’re called a work horse,” he said. He said that’s his reputation. “I make wrestlers better and I make wrestlers level up.” He said Moxley once said he thought he knew about wrestling until he got in the ring with him. He said he’s not “a” workhorse, he’s “the” workhorse. He said if anyone has forgotten, they’ll remember quick once they see him in the ring. Christian said he might have ruffled some feathers as the veteran with a big name coming in to take someone’s spot. He said he wants to put people’s minds at ease. He said there is only spot that interests him, and that’s the one held by Omega. He said he is in AEW to cement his legacy and put into action three simple words: Out Work Everyone.

(Keller’s Analysis: Christian perceives himself as a top-top guy, and most people don’t. But for him to be believable at all in a top-top spot like he’s being dropped into in AEW, he has to convey belief in himself. He did. That was a good, straight-forward, all-business promo establishing he is aimed squarely at the AEW World Title. The only thing missing is why viewers should want to see him end Kenny’s reign. Bragging about being a work horse and citing a Moxley compliment isn’t necessarily a babyface type framing of one’s character. So this is a good building block, but to rally fans to his side, he’s got to take it to the next level once things get personal. No one is as close to as interested in Christian “cementing his legacy” as he is, so he shouldn’t ride that as the be all, end all mission statement. He’s got to rally fans to his side around something less self-centered, which means pointing out what he finds distasteful about Omega and Callis on top of AEW. His delivery was serious, and his reputation isn’t about always being serious, so this set the tone.)

(4) THE GOOD BROTHERS (Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson) vs. JON MOXLEY & EDDIE KINGSTON

The Good Brothers attacked Kingston as he made his entrance on the stage. Moxley, with his shoulder all taped up, joined the fight. The Good Brothers dominated for a few minutes before they cut to a split-screen break. [c/ss]

Moxley got a hot-tag and landed a shotgun dropkick against Anderson. He knocked Gallows off the ring apron, then stomped away at Anderson. Later, he clotheslined Gallows out of the ring. Anderson went after Mox, but Mox caught him with an inside cradle for the three count.

WINNER: Moxley & Kingston in 10:00.

-The Good Brothers beat up Mox and Kingston afterward. Kenny and Callis came out. Kenny was snapping his fingers and dancing to the beat of the music. He had a chair in hand. He set up the chair mid-ring, then had Callis take off his sports coat for him. Kenny sat on the chair and was about to speak to the beaten and battered Mox, but Kingston charged in. The heels stomped away at him and then delivered a Magic Killer. Kenny shoved his boot onto Moxley’s head. They put Moxley’s leg in a chair and Anderson leaped off the second rope and stomped on it. Ross called for someone to stop it. (What’s Q.T. up to?) Kenny shook the top rope, Ultimate Warrior-style. Schiavone called for someone to stop this. They put a chair around Moxley’s neck. The Bucks ran out and got in the faces of Kenny, Gallows, and Anderson. They argued for a while. The Bucks turned down a group hand signal mid-ring. When they began to leave the ring, Kenny chased down Matt and yanked him around. He stuck the hand signal in Matt’s face. The Bucks left. Kenny yanked off his shirt and threw it down. Mox recovered during this time and ran into the ring with a chair. The heels retreated. Mox’s music played as he staggered to his feet.

(Keller’s Analysis: The Bucks have the top contenders to face in Pac & Rey Fenix, but they’re also embroiled in the situation with Kenny and The Good Brothers, which is fine if both have suitable payoffs. Maybe the Bucks & Mox vs. Kenny & The Good Brothers on TV soon? I like this Kenny. He seemed to care and brought energy, rather than just weird quirkiness.) [c]

-Schiavone introduced Sting and Darby. Ross and Excalibur talked about how sharp Sting looked in the street fight at Revolution. Darby said he has only defended the TNT Title three times since winning it. He said he wants to be more of a fighting champion, week in and week out. He said he wants to start by paying tribute to the greatest TNT Champion of all-time. A “Cody” chant broke out. He said if Dark Order wants a shot, step up. Lance Archer and Jake Roberts walked out. Archer said this should be his time. He laughed at Darby. He said, “The Internet might think you’re terrific, but as far as I’m concerned, you’re the biggest indyrific joke this business has ever seen.” He said if he likes coffins so much, he’s about to put his ass in one. Darby got in his face. Jake told Darby he’s nothing but a weenie. Jake turned to Sting and said he’s going to get what he’s got coming. He said Tony Khan better realize you don’t play with fire. He said Archer is the biggest, baddest ass in wrestling. “Get ready boys, because it’s changing.” When Archer and Jake left, Schiavone apologized to Sting and Darby. Taz then interrupted.

Brian Cage yanked the mic away from Taz and said Taz isn’t talking for him today, because he’s got something to say. He told Sting that he respects him now after the damndest street fight there’s been in this business. He said Ricky Starks is wrong, with or without his bat, he is still the icon. Tazz asked Cage what the hell is wrong with him. Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks joined. Cage stormed off, and the rest of Team Tazz followed.

(Keller’s Analysis: Archer is good in this role, and it’s good to hear Jake cutting a promo again. I’m intrigued by an apparent Brian Cage babyface turn. Having him feud with either Stark or Hobbs can be a good mid-card feud. And I like Darby wanting to be a fighting champion. That was a lot to fit into one segment, and I wouldn’t be happy if I were Archer that by the end of the segment, it was all about Cage.)

-A video package aired on Scorpio Sky. He said he was always told nice guys finish last, and he tried to be the exception to the rule. He said they want to push people like Cody, but not him. He said he will not be a stepping stone again. He said he’s a wrestling savant, and he will prove it even if he has to hurt people to do it.

(Keller’s Analysis: Good promo. I’m glad they followed up on last week’s turn. Viewers are likely to be sympathetic to his backstory, so the key is for him to handle his frustration poorly enough that fans turn against him despite the truth in what he is saying.)

(5) REY FENIX vs. ANGELICO

They cut to a break a few minutes in. [c]

Fenix landed a Crucifix Bomb and then his sitout piledriver finisher for the win.

WINNER: Fenix in 7:00.

-Marvez approached Miro who was doing pullups backstage. He talked about Chuck Taylor & Orange Cassidy challenging him. Miro said Charles tried to sweeten the deal by offering to be his butler for life. Miro said he’s moved on and has better things to do. Kip Sabian walked in and said he’s not over it. He said they ruined his wedding. He said he was supposed to care. He said Miro shoved him into his wife. Miro said tending to his wife isn’t more important than winning a match. He said the worst thing for your career is having your wife at ringside. He told him that when the bell rings, he doesn’t care about him, his wife, or his family drama. He said all he cares about is his destiny. He said he needs to be World Champion. Sabian said he wants that for him. Miro said, “Outside the ring, we’re still buds.” Miro walked away. Marvez asked Kip if they accept. Kip said, “Of course we accept.”

-The announcers reflected on that, then hyped Nyla Rose vs. Tay Conti, Kenny Omega vs. Matt Sydal, FTR & Spears vs. Varsity Blondes & Dante Martin, and Darby Allin vs. any member of Dark Order for the TNT Title.

-Marvez asked Dark Order who is going to accept the open challenge. -1 jumped in and said it’d be him. Evil Uno said maybe in nine years. They voted for John Silver, and he accepted. [c]

(6) THUNDER ROSA vs. BRITT BAKER (w/Rebel) – Lights Out match

Before the bell, Rebel hit Rosa with a crutch from behind. Rosa went after her. Britt speared her on the ramp and then landed an Air Raid Crash for a near fall. The announcers emphasized it’s a no-DQ match. Baker hit Rosa with a chair, then addressed the camera. Rosa got up and threw a chair into Baker’s head. They fought to the floor and then cut to a break. [c/ss]

They continued to brawl, with Baker bleeding heavily from her face. They used a ladder and chairs. Rosa met Baker on the top rope and delivered a Death Valley Driver onto the ladder leaning on the bottom rope. Rosa scored a near fall. Baker made a comeback. Rebel handed baker a black bag. She poured thumb tacks onto the ring canvas. Rosa tried to interfere with a crutch, but Rosa knocked her off the ring apron through a table below. She then countered Baker and gave her a sitout powerbomb onto the thumb tacks. That was good for a near fall. Baker got up and there were around 100 tacks stuck into her back. Schiavone said he’s never going to piss off Baker again. Baker and Rosa wrestled on the tacks, and Baker applied a Lock Jaw. Rosa leveraged Baker down onto the tacks, so Baker released the hold. A bloodied Baker crawled over to the ropes and pulled herself up, then caught Rosa with a superkick. Baker battled Rosa on the ring apron. Rosa gave her a power thunder driver off the ring apron and throuigh a table. Rosa covered Baker and got the three count. Ross called it “an amazing, amazing event.” Excalibur said it exceeded expectations. Ross said he’s never seen a night like this in his entire career. They closed with close-ups of the two battered and bloodied and punctured women.

WINNER: Rosa in 15:00.

(Keller’s Analysis: That was wild and memorable and brutal and will be remembered for a long time, I think.)