‘AEW: Dynamite’ Review (Jun 19th 2024)

Welcome to this week’s review of AEW: Dynamite, which was broadcast from the EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Virginia. We’ve got Excalibur, Taz and Tony Schiavone on commentary this week, so let’s get into the review!

Match #1: MJF def. RUSH

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

They charged at one another and slugged it out in the center of the ring. Rush connected with an overhand chop. MJF fired back with a chop of his own. Rush invited MJF to hit him. MJF poked Rush in the eyes. Rush baited MJF in and then headbutted MJF in the face. MJF was busted wide open. Rush rocked MJF with a haymaker. Rush kicked MJF in the jaw and then taunted MJF with a pose. MJF jumped on top of Rush, but Rush turned the tables and stomped on MJF’s abdomen. Rush went for the Bull’s Horns but Max dodged Rush. MJF rolled up Rush in a cradle for a near fall. MJF followed up with a thrust kick to Rush’s jaw. MJF applied a hammer lock and then spiked Rush with a DDT, but Rush kicked out at the two-count. MJF spiked Rush with a piledriver and covered Rush for a near fall. MJF charged at Rush, but Rush countered with a belly-to-belly suplex, using MJF’s momentum against him. MJF jumped of the ropes, but MJF slipped, and Rush took advantage of it with a KO strike. Rush nailed MJF with a straitjacket piledriver for a near fall. Rush clocked MJF with a strike and knocked MJF out of the ring. Rush whipped MJF into the barricade multiple times. Rush grabbed a steel chair and slid it into the ring after being admonished by the referee. The ref jumped into the ring to grab the chair and while his back was turned, Rush began to whip MJF with the TV camera cable. Rush charged at MJF, but MJF countered with a drop toehold, sending Rush headfirst into a steel chair. MJF and Rush jockeyed for position on the apron. Rush sent MJF flying with a belly to belly suplex off the apron, with Max crashing onto the arena floor with a brutal landing. Rush lined up for the Bull’s Horns, but MJF countered with a lariat to Rush. MJF planted Rush with a spinebuster and then grounded and pounded Rush. MJF chomped on Rush’s forehead. MJF blasted Rush with the Heat Seeker piledriver. MJF drilled Rush with a brainbuster and then pinned Rush!

My Score: 3.5 out of 5

Match #2: Mark Briscoe, Orange Cassidy, Dante Martin & Kyle O’Reilly def. Roderick Strong, Zack Sabre Jr., Kyle Fletcher and Konosuke Takeshita

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Both teams brawled with one another outside the ring. Briscoe chopped at Fletcher. Kyle Fletcher flew out of the ring with a tope suicida to Mark Briscoe. Cassidy hit Takeshita with a dropkick. Sabre put Orange in an Octopus Hold in the ropes. Dante jumped off the top rope and wiped out the entire pile of opposition outside the ring. Takeshita cold cocked Orange with a huge haymaker. Roderick Strong tagged himself in and he and Takeshita began to argue. Kyle O’Reilly hit both of them with round kicks. Roddy and Kyle exchanged chops. Kyle caught Roddy’s chop and drove Roddy’s shoulder into the mat. Dante grabbed a tag and took down Strong and Sabre with a hurracanrana. Dante was double teamed by Takeshita and Fletcher. Takeshita power bombed Dante off the top rope with an assist from Fletcher. Dante’s teammates ran in to break up the pin attempt on Dante. Dante was able to make the tag to Briscoe. Mark cleaned house on Roddy and Fletcher with redneck kung fu. Takeshita gouged Mark’s eyes. Briscoe retaliated with a Death Valley Driver and then the Froggy Bow. Orange dropped an elbow on Takeshita after some great team work from Dante and Kyle. Sabre grabbed Orange’s ankle in the corner while Takeshita hit a helluva kick. Takeshita cracked Dante with a jumping knee strike. Orange pulped Takeshita with a Stun Dog Millionaire. Dante blasted Takeshita with a cannonball. Briscoe jumped off the apron with a neck breaker to Takeshita. Sabre countered the Stun Dog Millionaire and went for a pin, but Kyle O’Reilly jumped in to break up the pin attempt. Roddy planted Cassidy onto the mat. Roddy charged in but O’Reilly pushed Cassidy out of the way and took the knee strike for Orange. Orange walloped Roddy with the Orange Punch and then pinned Roddy!

My Score: 4 out of 5

Match #3: The Acclaimed (Max Caster & Anthony Bowens) def. The Young Bucks (Matthew & Nicholas Jackson)

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Backstage, Okada pulled the plug on Caster’s rap. Bowens back dropped Nicholas onto the ramp. In the ring, Caster connected with European Uppercuts to Matthew. Bowens tagged in and connected with the Scissor Me Timbers on Nicholas. Matthew grabbed a tag, but Caster was waiting for him with hip tosses. The Bucks double teamed Caster until Caster made the tag to Bowens. Bowens tried to plan on his left leg, but it gave out on him. Matthew cracked Bowens with a stinging superkick! Nicholas crushed Bowens with a senton. The Bucks were looking for the EVP Trigger on Bowens, but Bowens blocked it. Bowens got kicked in his injured leg by Matthew. Nicholas superkicked Bowens. The Bucks pumped up their Reeboks and then smashed Bowens with a superkick party! Bowens broke up the pin attempt on Caster. Matthew blocked the ref’s vision with his body and hit a low blow on Bowens. The Bucks rocked Bowens with an EVP Trigger, but Caster jumped in to break up the pin attempt. The Bucks double teamed Bowens and Nicholas covered Bowens, but Bowens kicked out at the two-count! Matthew punished Bowens in the injured left thigh with kicks. Matthew grabbed a tag title and went to strike Bowens with it but Bowens ducked and the ref pulled the belt away from Matthew. Nicholas ran into the ring with his title belt, Bowens ducked again, and this time Nicholas inadvertently connected with a belt shot to Matthew! Bowens planted Matthew with the Arrival! Caster followed up with the Mic Drop and pinned Matthew!

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #4: The Owen Hart Foundation Women’s Tournament Quarterfinal Match – Kris Statlander def. Nyla Rose

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Nyla connected with a cross body press on Kris. Nyla tried climbing the turnbuckles, but Kris charged at her, knocking Nyla to the arena floor. Statlander stomped Nyla. Nyla Rose hit Kris with a clothesline, knocking Kris for a loop. Nyla charged in with a cannonball for a near fall. Kris escaped the Beast Bomb and rocked Rose with an ax kick across the back of the neck! Stat attempted a 450 from the top but Nyla moved out of the way. Nyla hit a back elbow on Statlander for a near fall. Statlander spiked Nyla Rose with a tombstone piledriver and scored the pin!

My Score: 3 out of 5

Match #5: Daniel Garcia def. Rhett Titus

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Garcia blasted Rhett with a shotgun dropkick in the corner. Garcia followed up with a series of neck breakers. Garcia planted Rhett head first and then pinned him.

My Score: 0 out of 5

Match #6: The Owen Hart Foundation Men’s Tournament Quarterfinal Match – PAC def. Claudio Castagnoli

The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:

Pac backed Claudio up with a dropkick. Claudio clocked Pac with European Uppercuts. Pac whipped Claudio into the barricade. Claudio clobbered Pac with a pop-up European Uppercut. Pac wiped out Claudio with a hurracanrana off the apron. Pac followed up with a moonsault. Claudio continued to clutch his injured hip. Pac went for another moonsault, but Claudio caught him. Pac countered with a DDT to Claudio on the arena floor. Pac followed up with a springboard elbow drop. Pac snapped Claudio with a release German Suplex. Pac took Claudio down with thrust kicks. Pac climbed to the top looking for the Black Arrow. Claudio moved and bulldozed Pac with a running European Uppercut for a near fall on Pac. Claudio hurled Pac around the ring with the Giant Swing! Claudio nearly decapitated Pac with a running lariat. Claudio hoisted up Pac, but Pac transitioned to the Brutalizer! Claudio escaped and applied the Sharp Shooter. Claudio gave up the Sharp Shooter and put Pac into the cross face! Pac escaped and cradled Claudio for a near fall. After a series of reversals, Pac rolled up Claudio and pinned him!

My Score: 4 out of 5

Final Verdict: 4/5

Let’s be honest, this was one of the best episodes of Dynamite we’ve had in what feels like ages. The entire show, even the squash match, all worked, flowed, and all the other cliches of wrestling reviewing. The ad-free opening match was pay-per-view worthy and it’s only wrestling politics that put a kibosh on that! As if that match wasn’t good enough, the follow-up 8-man tag match was even better! Then we have the Owen Hart matches – the women’s match saw Statlander kick arse and pull of a great win against Nyla Rose; but the men’s match… Wow. Pac and Claudio put on a clinic and either man deserved the win. Ultimately this is a superb example of the best kinds of AEW wrestling, outside of a PPV of course. Unmissable.