15th Jul2022

‘AEW: Dynamite – Fyter Fest Week 1’ Review (July 13th 2022)

by Phil Wheat

This week’s episode of AEW: Dynamite is the opening night of the two-week Dynamite & Rampage “event” Fyter Fest. Dynamite emanated from the Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia; with Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, and Taz on commentary yet again. Let’s get into the week one, night one, action!

Match #1: TNT Championship Match – Wardlow def. Orange Cassidy

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Orange Cassidy wanted to begin with a Grego Roman knuckle lock but placed his hands in his pockets instead. Wardlow tore the pockets out of Orange’s pants. Cassidy avoided a lariat and followed up with head scissors, but Wardlow cartwheeled out of it! Chuck Taylor tried to pass a chainsaw into the ring but ref Bryce Remsburg intercepted it, catching Best Friends red handed! He ejected them from the ringside area. Orange tried for the Orange Punch but Wardlow caught it! Wardlow stalked Orange Cassidy around the ringside area, trying to use his quickness to force Wardlow into a mistake. Wardlow saw Danhausen hiding under the ring. Danhausen was thinking of cursing Wardlow but thought twice. In the meantime, Orange ambushed Wardlow with the Orange Punch! Back in the ring, Wardlow hurled Orange Cassidy overhead, halfway across the ring! Wardlow hoisted up Orange Cassidy with a delayed vertical suplex and then flung him to the mat. Wardlow charged at Orange in the corner but Orange dodged it and smacked Wardlow’s head into the top turnbuckle. Orange chop blocked Wardlow, attacking the champion’s knee and taking him off his feet. Orange was looking for the Beach Break but Wardlow escaped. Wardlow attempted a powerbomb but Orange countered with two consecutive DDT’s. Wardlow launched Orange with the F10! Somehow Orange kicked out of the pin after the F10! Wardlow was looking for a powerbomb but Orange countered with a hurracanrana and then followed up with a tope suicida! He sent Wardlow into the steel ring post. Orange’s diving DDT was intercepted but Orange was able to put the champ into the Stundog Millionaire and then the Beach Break for a near fall! Wardlow blocked an Orange Punch and then countered with a powerbomb. Wardlow jumped on top of Orange Cassidy and pinned him. After the match, Wardlow fist bumped Orange Cassidy as a sign of respect.

My Score: 4 out of 5

Match #2: AEW Interim World Title Eliminator Match – Jon Moxley def. Konosuke Takeshita

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

William Regal joined the commentary team for this match. Moxley and Takeshita rammed one another with shoulder strikes. Takeshita chopped the champion’s chest. Moxley returned the favor with a chop of his own. Moxley clobbered Takeshita with the King Kong lariat. Moxley spiked Takeshita with a piledriver. Moxley tried for the pin but Takeshita kicked out at the two-count. Moxley tried for a piledriver on the ring apron but Takeshita fought out of it. Takeshita blasted Moxley with a German Suplex on the ring apron. Moxley booted Takeshita in the head. Takeshita was busted open. Takeshita ran into the ropes and flew off them with a leaping lariat at Moxley. Takeshita nailed Mox with a brainbuster for a near fall! Takeshita tried for the frog splash but Moxley raised his knees and Takeshita crashed onto them. Moxley locked on a cross arm breaker. Takeshita got his boot on the bottom rope to force the ref break. Takeshita took Moxley down with a hurracanrana! Takeshita jumped over the top rope and landed onto Moxley outside the ring! Takeshita followed up with a frog splash for another near fall on Moxley! Takeshita and Moxley exchanged elbows from their knees. Moxley put a sleeper on but Takeshita countered with a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall! Takeshita was looking for the jumping knee but Moxley blocked it and countered with the Paradigm Shift. Takeshita escaped a Death Rider and countered with a German Suplex for a near fall! Moxley headbutted Takeshita and after the Death Rider, he applied the bulldog choke and forced Takeshita to tap out!

My Score: 4.5 out of 5

Match #3: Luchasaurus def. Griff Garrison

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Luchasaurus stormed to the ring to face Griff Garrison. Luchasaurus splashed Griff and then rocked him with a German Suplex! Luchasaurus smashed Garrison’s head against the steel ring post with his boot, per Christian Cage’s demands. Luchasaurus choke slammed Griff twice and then made Griff tap with the Tar Pit submission! After the match, Luchasaurus choke slammed Griff on top of Pillman, who had been laid out on the timekeeper’s table. Luchasaurus smashed both of them through the table.

My Score: 1 out of 5

Match #4: Claudio Castagnoli def. Jake Hager

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

William Regal joined the commentary booth again. Claudio charged Jake with a shockwave of a European Uppercut! Claudio quickly looked for the giant swing but Hager escaped. Outside the ring, Hager walloped Claudio with a clothesline. Hager tried for the Hager Bomb but Claudio blocked it. Claudio came around with the 619 kick to Hager’s face. Hager had enough and came at Claudio at different angles with forearms. Claudio dropkicked Hager’s knees and then used a bulldog for a near fall on Hager. Hager hoisted up Claudio with a double leg off the buckles and then planted him. Hager blistered Claudio with body shots. Hager jumped off the ropes with the Hager Bomb right on target. Claudio spring boarded off the ropes with a European Uppercut to Hager. Claudio connected with a huge crossbody for a near fall on Hager. Claudio used the Giant Swing and then stepped through with the Scorpion Death Lock. Hager motioned for help and Angelo Parker and Matt Menard hit the ring! They distracted Claudio so Hager could plant Claudio for a near fall! Claudio knocked Angelo off the apron and then waffled Hager with a European Uppercut. Claudio finished off Hager with the Ricola Bomb for the pin!

My Score: 3.5 out of 5

Match #5: Serena Deeb def. Anna Jay

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Deeb grabbed a hammer lock. Deeb hit a shoulder block on Anna Jay but Anna Jay countered with a flatliner. Deeb captured Anna Jay’s arms but Anna reversed it into a pin attempt. Deeb broke free and Anna Jay tried for the Queen Slayer. Deeb blocked it and hit a twisting neck breaker for a two-count on Anna Jay. Anna Jay attempted for the Queen Slayer again but Serena Deeb escaped and countered with a roll-up for a near fall. Anna Jay transitioned into the Queen Slayer but Deeb got to her feet. Deeb wrenched back with the Serenity Lock and forced Anna Jay to tap out! Deeb wouldn’t let go of the hold until ROH Women’s World Champion Mercedes Martinez ran down.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #6: AEW World Tag Team Title Match – Swerve In Our Glory (Keith Lee & Swerve Strickland) def. The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) & Team Taz (Powerhouse Hobbs & Ricky Starks)

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Keith Lee and Matt Jackson began the match. Matt Jackson dodged a high kick from Lee and then Matt tagged out to brother Nick. Swerve tagged in and both he and Nick vaulted to the floor and got face to face. Nick slowed things down with a deep arm drag on Swerve. Starks tagged himself in and he quickly got crotched on the top rope! Matt Jackson nailed Starks with the locomotion Northern Lights suplexes. Keith Lee tagged in and he and Powerhouse Hobbs suplexed Matt Jackson! Lee suplexed Starks and Nick Jackson with a belly-to-bellies suplex. Swerve followed up with a diving uppercut to Matt Jackson. Matt Jackson sent Keith Lee out to the floor with a dropkick. Starks tagged himself in and he and Hobbs hit tandem offense on Swerve. Keith Lee made the tag and splashed the Bucks and then splashed Starks in the corner! Keith Lee hurled Starks at the champions. Nick Jackson jumped outside the ring but Keith Lee caught him and then powerbombed him onto Matt Jackson! Keith Lee was looking for another powerbomb but Nick Jackson escaped. Powerhouse Hobbs tagged in and he and Keith Lee collided. Keith Lee headed up to the ropes for a superplex but Hobbs headbutted his way out of it. Hobbs crushed Lee with a frog splash! Starks walked the ropes and came off with a cutter on Nick Jackson for a near fall! Swerve and Matt grabbed tags and Swerve smashed Matt with a lariat in the face! The Bucks knocked Lee down to one knee with a superkick party! The Bucks superkicked Starks. Hobbs charged at the Bucks but inadvertently splashed ref Rick Knox. Cutler tossed the tag belts to the Bucks but Starks used it against the Bucks after intercepting it. Matt Jackson grabbed the belt from Swerve and waffled Swerve in the head. The Bucks hit the BTE Trigger on Swerve but Starks broke up their pin attempt. Matt Jackson ate a Swerve Stomp but the pin was broken up! Hobbs hit everyone with spinebusters right on top of Keith Lee. Starks speared Nick Jackson! Matt Jackson tried for a superkick but Keith Lee took Matt’s sneaker off and hit the Bucks with the sneaker as Rick Knox was distracted! Starks hit Lee in the back of the head with a rabbit punch! Swerve jumped off the chest of Keith Lee, using Lee as a launching pad, to take out the opposition outside the ring. Inside the ring Keith Lee pounced on Starks! Swerve finished off Starks with the Swerve Stomp and then pinned Starks! And new AEW World Tag Team Champions… Swerve In Our Glory!

My Score: 4 out of 5

Final Verdict: 4.5/5

Good god this was how you do a good wrestling show. The time flew by and not a single match felt like it over-ran or was struggling to fill the time. The opening match was SO good, with Wardlow proving that yes, he is the man to bring prestige back to the TNT title. Brilliant show of respect to OC post-match too. They say Wardlow is a class act backstage and he’s one out in the ring too. And as if that wasn’t enough, we got another banger of a match from Konosuke Takeshita – as if pulling off a brilliant match against Eddie Kingston on Rampage last week wasn’t enough, he pulled this one out of his back pocket. There’s going to be a HUGE void to fill when Takeshita goes back to DDT. There really is.

After two hot matches we got a quick squash as Luchasaurus made easy work of Griff Garrison, in a match that did a lot to sell the heel turn of Christian Cage and the dinosaur. Making Luchasaurus win matches this quickly and this viciously has done wonders for his character in mere weeks. That squash was followed by a redux of Claudio Castagnoli and Jake Hager’s days in the “other” promotion. Yes, we’ve seen it before but there was an odd sense of nostalgia about seeing it again years later. The Serena Deeb/Anna Jay match played out pretty much as expected, with Jay not rolling over and submitting right away, really taking it to Deeb, despite being out-experienced by the veteran Deeb. Hopefully this Jay/Deeb thing will continue after Deeb’s feud with Martinez concludes (imagine how good Anna Jay would be after working with such a fantastic women’s wrestler?!)

Then we got the main event, a triple-threat three-way tag match for the titles. And no one could of, or would have, predicted the winners – even in the fan’s wildest imaginations (and hopes). Yes, the match was a bit of s spot-fest but that didn’t detract from just how well these six guys worked together. Everyone got their time to shine, both in terms of teams and individuals and the match was certainly what you’d call a crowd-pleaser. And then seeing Hobbs and Lee step up to each other? Well that was dream-match like! A great way to end a great Dynamite. Here’s hoping this upwards trend continues for AEW and the rest of Fyter Fest.

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