This episode of AEW Dynamite is vastly improved by its outstanding adrenaline rush of a main event. Over 20 minutes of exhilarating action with a top quality cast of diverse wrestlers to create a super end to an otherwise solid show. There was nothing especially poor on the episode, but much of it did feel a little bit of a placeholder, taking much of the episode to fully find its feet. The opening hour was not without merit but did drag a tad, but the second hour did improve in its pacing thanks to Mercedes/Blue, a great Elite segment and then the phenomenal main event. While there were big storyline developments on the show, there was also a lot of filler in that first hour which unfortunately limits the storytelling rating. Still, the final hour gave Dynamite a huge shot of adrenaline after a relatively slow start to create an ultimately good episode of weekly tv.
Tonight on AEW Dynamite, A Forbidden Door Gauntlet will decide Swerve Strickland’s challenger at Forbidden Door. Mercedes Mone will also have a championship celebration after taking down Willow for the TBS Title. Elsewhere on the card, Jon Moxley faces Rocky Romero in an IWGP Eliminator match, while The Elite will reveal the status of the TNT Title.
ABOVE AVERAGE Mercedes Mone Promo
A relatively simple and slightly underwhelming promo from Mercedes led to the understandable continuation of the Julia Hart/Mercedes feud teased earlier in the month when Skye Blue revealed she attacked Mercedes a few weeks ago. She then appears and takes out Mercedes. Functional, but this continues to be fairly stilted delivery from Mone
David Sheldon WR Star Rating – 2.75 Stars
GREAT Swerve Strickland vs Killswitch
Swerve and Killswitch have surprisingly strong chemistry here in a traditional big man/little man back and forth. Swerve brought some vicious ferocity and intelligence to take the big guy down, creating a compelling encounter. Killswitch was put over incredibly strongly here but fell to a second House Call. It wasn’t a mind blowing encounter, but it did it’s job well of getting Swerve over as a monster and blowing this feud off for the time being
David Sheldon WR Star Rating – 3.5 Stars
Tony Schiavone announces Mercedes vs Skye for tonight which is excellent news!
Great promo from Moxley ahead of his match with Rocky. He has charisma coming from every bone in his body.
GOOD TV Time with Chris Jericho
I got some big chuckles out of Jericho in this segment, who’s goofball nature was amped up to 11. Big Bill is also entertainingly silly which creates a fun dynamic. It remains to be seen if Bryan Keith, who made his first appearance with the group, will fit the energy, as his vicious bounty Hunter grit feels at odds. This could just as easily create dissonance of tone as it could be an entertaining clash of characters, but that remains to be seen. The segment was fun, but felt like almost nothing was really advanced and so felt pretty filler in truth.
David Sheldon WR Star Rating- 3 Stars
Succinct showcase package for Stephanie Vaquer, my guess for a FD opponent is Mercedes but I could be wrong
GOOD Jon Moxley vs Rocky Romero
A simple match built around arm psychology as Rocky targeted the weak spot of Moxley. An intelligent, if not always riveting clash where both guys knew how to tell a story and did so logically and with wit, but didn’t quite captivate the crowd or myself in the way they could’ve. Moxley picks up the win in a filler appearance, but one which admittedly did provide a good match for the card
Result: Jon Moxley by Pinfall via Death Rider
David Sheldon WR Star Rating- 3.25 Stars
GOOD Don Callis Presents A Contract
This segment had a major pro and a major con. On the positive side, Trent joining the Don Callis family will be great for him after the losses to Cassidy, and will hopefully allow him to build up some singles wins on tv. The negative is that this all felt rushed. Considering Cassidy has been interacting with Callis for weeks, it seems odd for him to immediately throw it away when he’s not really shown any dissention with him. Cassidy is of course a moral man, but even do some complexity here couldve really benefited a very well delivered, but narratively undercooked segment
David Sheldon WR Star Rating- 3.25 Stars
Daniel Garcia is coming after Will Ospreay for what should be a great program.
GREAT Mercedes Mone vs Skye Blue
A good match strategically placed at the top of the second hour, this was exactly what you expected from these two women. Perhaps more simple than it could’ve been, especially given it’s relatively slight length, but it did it’s job well and was an exciting addition to the card. A shot of adrenaline when it was desperately needed
Result: Mercedes Mone by Pinfall via Mone Maker
David Sheldon WR Star Rating- 3.75 Stars
Statlander and Stokely cut a very good backstage promo setting our Statlanders reasonings and motivations. I really hope she is able to stay as a top woman on the roster and not become relegated to Rampage fodder post-turn.
AMAZING The Elite Promo
The Elite are exceptionally entertaining heels, and they proved it again here, a preening and self congratulatory promo that featured possibly the funniest performance Kazuchika Okada has ever given. Opening the promo by calling the audience ‘b**ches’ before sobbing with joy when gifted a Lamborghini really made me chuckle, proving that Okada is more than capable of fun character work as well as top quality wrestling. The reappearance of Christopher Daniels as Tony Khan’s tv voice is excellent, and the announcement of a TNT Title ladder match will be fantastic amounts of fun. Just another well delivered piece into this Elite storyline.
David Sheldon WR Star Rating- 4 Stars
MUST WATCH Forbidden Door Gauntlet
This may be a relatively new concept to AEW, and still doesn’t fully make sense in its rules, but it has quickly become one of the most unpredictable and entertaining matches in the company’s arsenal. This was a spectacular tv main event, epitomising the idea of the Forbidden Door better than arguably any match in the company’s history. It wasn’t perfect, with a few minor botches from Místico and some occasional mis timings, but I had the absolute time of my watching legitimate dream encounters happening before my eyes. Ospreay will be a controversial winner considering many May think it is too soon. My opinions are mixed and complex, but I’m going to allow them the grace to tell their story before speaking further as I was so captivated by this match. Hell of a Dynamite main event.
Result: Will Ospreay by Oz-Cutter
David Sheldon WR Star Rating- 4.5 Stars
Overall…
This episode of AEW Dynamite is vastly improved by its outstanding adrenaline rush of a main event. Over 20 minutes of exhilarating action with a top quality cast of diverse wrestlers to create a super end to an otherwise solid show. There was nothing especially poor on the episode, but much of it did feel a little bit of a placeholder, taking much of the episode to fully find its feet. The opening hour was not without merit but did drag a tad, but the second hour did improve in its pacing thanks to Mercedes/Blue, a great Elite segment and then the phenomenal main event. While there were big storyline developments on the show, there was also a lot of filler in that first hour which unfortunately limits the storytelling rating. Still, the final hour gave Dynamite a huge shot of adrenaline after a relatively slow start to create an ultimately good episode of weekly tv.
Matches: 0.75/1 Stars
Show Structure: 0.5/1 Stars
Atmosphere: 0.75/1 Stars
Storytelling: 0.5/1 Stars
Production/Theme: 0.75/1 Stars
Overall Rating: 3.25/5 Stars
Photo Credit: All Elite Wrestling – May 29th 2024
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