‘All Elite Wrestling: Dynamite’ Review (April 22nd 2020)

Welcome to this week’s AEW: Dynamite review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and while I ponder my stupidity, let the chick from Andy Warhol’s “The Chubby Mermaid” guide you through another card from Tony Khan’s Playhouse.

Match #1: Darby Allin defeated Sammy Guevara – TNT Championship Tournament Quarter Final Match

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

The winner will go on to face Cody in the second round. Sammy is on a three-match winning streak. “Has there been a bigger break-out star since the beginning of DYNAMITE eight months ago than Darby Allin?” pondered Jericho. As Darby made his way to the ring, Sammy jumped him, propelling himself over the top rope! “The match has not even started! The bell has not even sounded!” said Schiavone. Sammy whipped Darby into the steel barricade on the outside. “This was The Inner Circle’s plan, and Sammy followed through,” explained Jericho. Sammy set up a steel ladder, balancing it on top of the outside guardrail and the ring apron. Sammy positioned Darby onto the ladder and then splashed onto him from the top turnbuckle! Sammy pulled Darby into the ring and ref Aubrey Edwards called for the match the start. Sammy immediately went for the cover but Darby managed to kick out at two! Sammy pulled on Darby’s arms and stomped down on his head. Sammy propped up Darby on the top turnbuckle but Darby fought back! Sammy was caught in the ropes, and Darby yanked off Sammy’s boot and wrenched on his ankle. “It’s a reverse ankle lock from the top rope. I’ve never seen that before!” said Jericho. Darby began head-butting the ankle of Sammy, until Sammy kicked him away with the free leg. With one foot, Sammy hit a springboard cutter on Darby! There was another near-fall on Darby, who was bleeding from the nose. Sammy walked up to a downed Darby, but Darby rolled him up with the ankle lock on the foot that had no wrestling boot! They began slugging it out until Darby finally released the hold. Sammy caught Darby with a spinning back-fist, and then kicked him right in the face. Darby rolled out to the floor after escaping the pin attempt, luring Sammy out with him. Darby ran back into the ring and launched himself through the ropes, but Sammy moved, sending Darby crashing into the guardrail! Back in the ring, Sammy smashed onto Darby with a 630 splash! Darby grabbed the bottom rope just in time to break the pin attempt. Darby rallied back with a cutter, and tried for a quick Coffin Drop, but Sammy caught him mid-flight! Sammy tried for the GTS but Darby countered with the Last Supper and pinned Sammy! Darby Allin is advancing to the semi-finals of the TNT Championship Tournament!

My Opinion: 3.3 out of 5 – This was about eleven minutes of very nice. Sammy and Darby already have a familiarity that makes this pairing very easy to watch. There’s a little bit of everything in terms of action, but this was certainly a match that lived and died by the risks taken. With something of the rebel spirit that makes all matches great, you’ll get a nice taste of what both men are capable of here.

Match #2: Kenny Omega defeated Alan Angels

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Angels went for a leg sweep, but Kenny brushed it off. Kenny knocked Angels down with a shoulder block. Angels snuck out of a snapdragon suplex attempt from Kenny, but that only angered Kenny, who lit up Angels with knife-edged chops. Angels tried a back-splash on Kenny, but Kenny lifted the knees in time! Kenny dropped Angels with a fierce backbreaker. Kenny turned Angels inside out with a lariat. Kenny ducked some offense from Angels and planted him with a snapdragon suplex! He followed up with a V-trigger knee! Kenny wiped out Angels with a gut wrench powerbomb and another V-trigger for the victory!

My Opinion: 2.8 out of 5 – This was a long squash match. What a waste of both men.

Match #3: Orange Cassidy defeated Jimmy Havoc

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Havoc blindsided Orange, storming him from behind. He wacked Orange in the back of the head with a stiff forearm. Havoc removed Orange’s denim jacket and began to choke him with it until ref Aubrey Edwards stopped him. Havoc pulled the shirt off Cassidy and chopped him. Havoc choked him with the shirt. “He loves to torture people,” noted Schiavone. Havoc dumped Orange onto the floor outside the ring and then slung him into the guardrail. Havoc suplexed Orange onto the concrete! Havoc rammed Orange’s head into the steel post. “He’s wiping the mat with Orange here,” said Jericho. Jimmy Havoc applied an arm bar to Orange in the center of the ring. The ref broke the hold, as Orange was able to get to the ropes. Havoc started biting Orange’s hands. Orange rolled out of the way of a clothesline and then dropkicked Havoc! Orange got a second wind and hit a flying cross body on Havoc! Orange nailed Havoc with a big DDT! Havoc barely escaped the pin. Havoc punched Orange in the face and then set him up on the top turnbuckle. As Havoc was climbing to the top, Orange grabbed Havoc’s ankles and sent him crashing to the mat! Orange splashed Havoc for a two-count. Orange connected with a superman punch on Havoc! Penelope Ford climbed the ring apron, trying to distract Orange Cassidy, but Chuck Taylor pulled her down. Kip Sabian ran from the back and jumped over the top rope, taking out both members of Best Friends! Penelope jumped off the top rope but Orange moved. In the middle of all the chaos, Orange rolled up Havoc for the victory! Havoc and Sabian double-teamed Orange after the match until Best Friends ran them off!

My Opinion: 2.9 out of 5 – A lot of this was just OC posturing in his odd way for upwards of ten minutes. There’s nothing bad here, with both competitors working hard in a match that just felt a bit off, that’s all.

Match #4: Wardlow defeated Lee Johnson

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Wardlow sent Johnson to the ground with an explosive knee! Wardlow pressed Johnson and then smashed him into the mat! “I think he literally broke him in half,” said Schiavone. Wardlow launched Johnson halfway across the ring with a release suplex! He did it a second time, throwing him like a sack of potatoes. “That’s Mike Tyson-style power coming from that lower half of his body,” added Jericho. Wardlow flung Johnson with a wicked airplane spin! Wardlow pinned Johnson and picked up a decisive victory.

My Opinion: 2.1 out of 5 – Wardlow killed the poor guy in a squash match that made me feel like I had been mugged by a sledgehammer.

Match #5: Brodie Lee defeated Justin Law

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Brodie Lee hammered Law with stiff uppercuts and forearms! He followed up with a superkick on Law. “Justin’s out. He could pin this guy at any point now,” said Jericho. Lee sent Law flying with two brutal suplexes. Brodie was staring down Marko Stunt from inside the ring. Brodie knocked out Law with a discus lariat and got the easy victory. Brodie Lee approached Marko at ringside and sized him up. To his credit, Marko didn’t back down. Brodie walked off. “There’s a fine line between courage and stupidity, and Marko is walking that line,” noted Jericho.

My Opinion: 2.2 out of 5 – These squash match scores are just random. Lee fought Law and Lee won.

Match #6: (Main Event) Dustin Rhodes defeated Kip Sabian – TNT Championship Tournament Quarter Final Match

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Rhodes announced that if he couldn’t beat Sabian tonight, he would retire. Dustin offered to shake Kip’s hand at the start of the match, but Kip declined. Dustin missed a forearm and an elbow but eventually found his target with an uppercut and an arm drag to Kip. Dustin chopped away at Kip in the corner. Penelope Ford got involved and grabbed Dustin’s foot, buying Kip some time. Momentum shifted in Kip’s favor with a step-up enzuirgiri and a kick to Dustin. Kip applied a front face lock to Dustin. Dustin powered Kip into the corner turnbuckle. Dustin ran to the corner and lifted a knee but Kip sidestepped it, causing Dustin’s knee to buckle. “Dustin hurt his knee that time,” said Schiavone. Kip wasted no time in targeting Dustin’s knee, stomping on it, and then wrenching it. Kip whipped Dustin into the corner, but Dustin went down in a heap. “Dustin Rhodes can’t even walk now,” added Jericho. Kip hit a dropkick and went for the cover, but Dustin countered with a roll-up for a two-count! Dustin attempted a scoop-slam but his injured leg gave out, and Kip landed on top of him for a near fall. Kip missed a dropkick and Dustin tried to pin him with a forward roll! Kip hit a knee on Dustin, then a discus lariat, and tried for the pin on Dustin. “Dustin better pull out some energy reserves here, because if this was an MMA fight, Dustin would lose on points for sure,” said Jericho. Kip snapmared Dustin over and kicked him in the back! Dustin got back on his feet and hit a quick spinebuster on Kip! Dustin followed up with a bulldog! Dustin used a Rhodes powerslam on Kip for a two-count! “Dustin Rhodes may have a little bit left in his tank!” noted Schiavone. Kip connected with a swinging DDT off the second rope! Dustin kicked out at two! Kip mounted Dustin and began the ground and pound attack, until ref Aubrey Edwards pulled him off Dustin. While the referee was admonishing Kip, Penelope tried to interfere, but Brandi speared Penelope! Kip looked outside the ring to see what happened to Penelope, and Dustin used the opportunity to plant him with the Code Red Canadian Destroyer! Rhodes scored the victory and is advancing to the semi-finals!

My Opinion: 3.5 out of 5 – Sam Shepard’s “Silent Tongue” is a pretty good picture. That’s how this starts. Dustin is kinda like a more bizarre version of Shepard (albeit less interesting over-all). You’d never expect some-one like Dustin to have ever been Goldust or Seven (gimmick’s run in seconds as well) or Black Reign (the gimmick that will block you on Twitter), but he is as eclectic as they come when it comes to the decisions he makes in the ring. Dustin, which this match will demonstrate to you, has long since moved past the broad strokes of the strange young man he once was and become a strong, unique fighter. The Sam Shepard comparison is in that Sam was also a man you’d think was born of the old west or the sweet south, but breathed the fire of a rebellious old soul born forever young. Dustin has become an icon of a certain kind, one who has a mystique that has transformed him into a symbol of an era long gone, but not forgotten. The match here with Kip could’ve gone the way of today and favored the style of substance beneath style, but instead gave way to Dustin’s mind and skills, which led to a far more nuanced contest of give and get. I can’t tell you that this was the match of the year, but I can tell you that, given Kip kept-up with Dustin’s action acumen, I’d say that this talk of the old ways becoming a thing of the past may just be a bit exaggerated, if there are more like Kip out there who will yield the field to those with more experience than they. If this match could’ve been written on Dustin Rhodes grave it would say “HERE LIES A MAN WHO WAS TOO BUSY TO ATTEND HIS OWN FUNERAL”. Okay…enough of the poetry bull-s—. This match was good and I needed something to fill a paragraph with. I should’ve just written a bubblegum cookie recipe instead. Sam Shepard…?

News Of The Night:

1. The Inner Circle did The Bubbly Bunch again and it sucked s—.
2. Best Friends with Orange Cassidy fight Kip Sabian and Jimmy Havoc in a No DQ, No Count-Out Match, next week.
3. Cody Rhodes cut a great promo on all his troubles and the importance of winning the TNT Championship.

Final Verdict: 3.1/5

The main event got this the .1 and a bit more than that as well. Over-all, this was a dull show that tried to do too many things at once, when it should have just focused on one thing and made that feel like life itself.