Christ, we're really gonna be stuck with Jon Moxley as AEW Champion until July, aren't we? Just....why? It's rare that an AEW PPV leaves me feeling like Tony made the wrong call, but this was one of those times. Why TK won't move on from this Death Riders thing that's been pretty universally considered a misfire, I'm sure I don't know. If the plan is for Will Ospreay to win the title at All In, fine, but why does it have to be against Mox, with whom so many of us are just bored? Why couldn't Swerve-Ospreay be the All In match, or better yet, the Forbidden Door match, since FD is taking place in London?
So yeah, AEW Dynasty wasn't the homerun Revolution was, nor the homerun Dynasty 2024 was, but that's not to say it wasn't a really good show overall. My dissatisfaction with the main event finish notwithstanding, this show had a ton of fine wrestling on it, and every other result was the right one. It was missing a five-star classic, but a few bouts came close.
One example was the blistering opening match, an Owen Cup first-rounder pitting Will Ospreay against last-minute substitute Kevin Knight (filling in for the injured Jay White). These two packed a ton into their allotted 14 minutes and Knight came off looking like a major new acquisition for the company. Lots of innovative spots and counters, and each guy kicked out of signature moves. Ospreay finally took Knight down after a Styles Clash, OsCutter and Hidden Blade. Damn good opener. ****1/2
Probably the weakest match of the night was next as The Hurt Syndicate faced Big Bill and Bryan Keith. This wasn't a bad match but it was middling. Lashley and Benjamin as usual looked dominant, although Bill was presented as a threat. They ended up fighting on the outside, where MJF popped up out of nowhere and knocked Bill out with the diamond ring to try and prove his worth to the Hurt Syndicate, who looked none too impressed. Lashley and Benjamin hit Bryan Keith with a suplex and a spear for the win. **3/4
Another Owen match was next as Mercedes Mone battled Julia Hart. They had a few minor miscues throughout the match but overall this was solid. The crowd was subdued until the final minutes, likely because no one thought Julia was winning. But late in the match Julia countered a Statement Maker into Hartless, and the crowd really woke up for that. Mercedes escaped and ended up winning with a flash pin. Decent match. ***3/4
One of the big stories coming out of Dynasty took place after the Trios Championship match, and both the match and angle were quite good. Rated FTR challenged the Death Riders for the straps and it was wall to wall action. My favorite spot was when three of the participants put the other three in sharpshooters, and Claudio and Dax just started taking shots at each other while locking their respective opponents in the hold. Ultimately a miscue among the challengers proved their undoing, as Copeland missed a spear, almost hit Dax, but Wheeler shoved Cope into Dax and then knocked him flat with the Busaiku Knee. Post-match Dax shook Cope's hand but then hit him with a snap piledriver. He set up a con-chair-to and handed a chair to Cash, but Cash threw it down, helped Cope up and then FTR hit him with the Shatter Machine, followed by two con-chair-tos. Cope was stretchered out and FTR are heels again. Really well done segment. ****
The Women's World Title was next as Toni Storm came out in Rocky-inspired gear (they were in Philly after all). This match was quite good and Megan Bayne came off like a big star. Penelope Ford interfered early but Luther put her on his shoulders and then fireman's carried her away from ringside. Storm took over on offense after a lot of back and forth including some traded German suplexes. Storm hit the hip attack but Bayne no-sold, so Storm hit three more, followed by Storm Zero. Bayne kicked out at one and fired up. Bayne went for the F5 but Storm countered into a small package for the win. I have to think these two will meet again, but this was a great way to keep Storm as champion while protecting Megan, who should go on a big winning streak to earn a rematch. ****1/4
The third and final Owen Cup match on the show pitted Kyle Fletcher vs. Mark Briscoe and as usual these two worked together beautifully. Briscoe has a very special connection with the audience and even though we all knew Fletcher was winning, the crowd stayed in it with Mark. They each hit their big moves, Fletcher with a brutal brainbuster on the apron, Briscoe with a Froggy Bow to the outside. After loads of counters and nearfalls, Fletcher hit a pair of running kicks and the turnbuckle brainbuster to advance in the tournament. Great stuff. ****1/2
The ROH Title vs. Mask match was next, and Bandido's mother and sister were at ringside (more on them later). Jericho came right out of the gate with a Codebreaker for a nearfall. Bandido recovered and hit a stalling suplex that lasted a full minute (very impressive if not at all realistic). They fought on the top rope with Jericho going for a hurricanrana but Bandido blocking it. Bandido tried a powerbomb but Jericho got the hurricanrana in the end. Jericho countered the 21-plex with the Walls of Jericho, but Bandido made the ropes. After run-ins from Bryan Keith and Gravity, and with referee Bryce Remsburg distracted, Jericho hit Bandido with his baseball bat and then covered him for the pin. The crowd was stunned and fully anticipated an unmasking, but Bandido's mother and sister petitioned second referee Aubrey Edwards (not sure why she wasn't the main ref her since it was a Jericho match) that foul play had occurred. Aubrey went over to the corner and found the bat which Jericho had stuffed behind the ring steps. Bryce then ordered the match restarted, and Bandido hit his GTS variation and the 21-plex to win the belt. ***3/4
One match that suffered a bit from its late slot on the card was Daniel Garcia vs. Adam Cole for the TNT Title. This match was perfectly fine but the crowd was getting pretty tired and they were saving their energy for the last two bouts. Oddly despite the no time limit stipulation this match only went fifteen minutes. Early in the match Cole went for Panama Sunrise off the apron to the floor, but Garcia moved and Cole landed badly on his ankle, which Garcia took advantage of. Garcia hit a spinning Gotch piledriver but Cole fought back. Cole eventually did hit Panama Sunrise on the floor, but back in the ring Garcia hit one of his own, followed by The Boom for a nearfall. Garcia went for a piledriver off the second rope but Cole countered into another Panama Sunrise and hit The Boom to win the title. Very good match but probably should've been earlier on the card. ****
The match of the night for me was the International Title three-way with Kenny Omega defending against Ricochet and newcomer "Speedball" Mike Bailey. This was a wild affair with tons of creative spots that involved all three guys. My only complaint is that at 31 minutes it was about 5-7 minutes too long. Way too many spots and moments to try and recap, but Bailey definitely made his mark in AEW with this match, hitting all kinds of flip-dives into knees spots. Omega at one point hit Snapdragons on both guys and then hit one on both of them simultaneously. There were numerous nearfalls where one guy would roll up both opponents, or two guys would try to pin the third. Bailey at one point hit the Karate Kid crane kick on Ricochet. After several finisher attempts Omega finally hit an Avalanche One Winged Angel on Ricochet to retain. Great match. As Omega celebrated, Kazuchika Okada sauntered to the ring and the two legendary rivals had a faceoff. ****3/4
Now for the main event. As I said, I strongly feel the result was the wrong one, but the match itself was very good. Another 31-minute marathon on a show that was already running long, this bout went from scientific grappling to ground-and-pound, to big high spots, the most memorable of which involved Swerve hitting the double stomp off the ladder through the Spanish announce table. As expected both Hangman Page and the Death Riders got involved after a ref bump (Mox went to throw a chair in Swerve's face but Swerve ducked). Page teased hitting the Buckshot Lariat on Swerve but then contemplated hitting Mox instead. But Mox's friends pulled him to the floor and attacked him. Page dodged a Busaiku Knee and hit Mox with a Deadeye, and then The Opps ran down to chase the Death Riders away. Swerve then hit the double stomp on Moxley but there was no ref to count the pin. The lights went out, and when they came up the Young Bucks had set up Swerve for the BTE Trigger. Moxley then covered Swerve for the pin. So a few things. Besides the fact that Moxley as champion is beyond stale at this point and I can't fathom thinking another three months of it is a good move, why are the Bucks getting involved with Swerve and not getting their comeuppance for attacking Kenny Omega last year? Are we seriously not gonna have Kenny get revenge on Jack and the Bucks before facing Okada? I assume this situation sets up The Bucks, Claudio, Pac and Wheeler vs. Swerve, Hangman and The Opps for Anarchy in the Arena? And then Mox faces.....someone for the title? Like, all of this is fine but how are we not getting a Kenny revenge tour? Anyway I'll give the match ****1/4 but TK better have some really good shit in mind to make up for Swerve not getting back the title he never should've lost.
Best Match: Kenny vs. Ric vs. Mike
Worst Match: Hurt Syndicate vs. Bill & Bryan
What I'd Change: As I said in my predictions piece, Hangman should've helped Swerve win, Swerve should return the favor to help Hangman win the Owen, and the two archenemies fight in Texas for the title. Kenny should face Jack Perry next month for the International Title and Kenny and a partner should face the Bucks sometime in June, on his way to the match with Okada.
Most Disappointing Match: The main event, obviously
Most Pleasant Surprise: I guess the Trios match
Overall Rating: Since so much of the show was so good, I'll give in a 9/10
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