‘AEW: Dynamite’ Review (Sep 3rd 2025)
Welcome to this week’s review of AEW: Dynamite, which was broadcast from 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, the old home of ECW, as part of AEW’s residency at the venue. Let’s get straight into the review of the show!
Match #1: TBS Championship – Mercedes Moné def. Alex Windsor
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Windsor came out of the gates all over Moné, nearly capturing the TBS Champion in the same Sharpshooter that earned a tap out two weeks ago. The challenger was in control and concern was written all over Moné’s face. Mercedes battled back and locked in The Statement Maker, yet Windsor was able to get a break. That submission didn’t keep Windsor down for long, as she was able to recover quickly with a huge cannonball to the outside, knocking Moné’s head off the floor. Once again, Windsor locked in her Sharpshooter, but it was on the apron, so a tap didn’t matter. Moné grabbed Windsor’s hair to gain a little separation and then slid through to the outside and powerbombed Windsor on the apron. The champion remained in control until Windsor hit a big headbutt counter to turn the tide back in her favor. Windsor had the champion reeling and locked in the Sharpshooter for a third time, but this time it was right in the middle of the ring! Moné resorted to a hair pull to get out of it, as it was apparent she was getting desperate. Moné hit a Crucifix Bomb to get out of Windsor’s grasp for a two-count, but when Moné went for more, Windsor countered into a sitout powerbomb, leaving both competitors on the mat. Justin Roberts announced 10 minutes remained in the championship match. Windsor stirred first and realized she had Moné’s legs in a compromising position, so she locked in yet another Sharpshooter. The two rolled to the floor, but Windsor still had Moné’s legs in the Sharpshooter as the champion tapped, although it meant nothing. Both women returned to the ring and Moné tried to set up The Monéymaker, but Windsor was able to counter. And quickly followed with a blue thunder bomb. However, Mercedes kicked out at the last possible moment. With Windsor on the top rope, a headbutt stunned her, allowing Moné to throw her to the mat. Moné immediately locked in The Statement Maker, and after a couple escape attempts, Windsor was able to reverse the submission into a pin attempt for a two count. As Windsor popped up, Moné reversed the momentum into a capture pin for the victory and successful title defense!
My Score: 4 out of 5
Match #2: Mark Briscoe def. Lance Archer
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Before his match, Mark Briscoe addressed how special it was to be back in the 2300 Arena because it was the building where he and his brother Jay fell in love with professional wrestling. Callis made his way to the ring with Rocky Romero and Lance Archer. He said he was too busy getting Fletcher ready to deal with the impatient Briscoe, but then revealed that Briscoe would face Konosuke Takeshita this Saturday on AEW Collision. Takeshita made his way out to face off with Briscoe and exited without incident. That wasn’t enough for Briscoe, as he demanded another member of the Callis Family face him tonight. Archer stepped up and we had ourselves an impromptu match. Briscoe attacked Archer as he tried to step over the top rope, and with a referee in the ring, the bell rang. Immediately, Briscoe knocked Archer back to the outside and went for a dive, but he was caught by Archer and chokeslammed onto the apron! Archer went for a quick pin and got a two count, and it was clear he had more danger on his mind. It didn’t take long to see what that was, as Archer hit another chokeslam, this time on the steel steps. With Archer in full control, he beat Briscoe up around the ringside area before finally getting back in the ring. As the Philadelphia crowd got behind him with “DEM BOYZ” chants, Briscoe finally got Archer down and tried the dive to the outside again, but this time he was successful, nearly knocking both him and Archer into the front row. Archer’s power got him back into the contest with a powerbomb in the corner followed by yet another chokeslam, which would have finished the match against most opponents, but not Briscoe. He kicked out in the nick of time, eliciting a huge reaction and another shot of life. Briscoe took Archer down again and knew this was his chance. Briscoe quickly scaled the ropes and hit a picture-perfect Froggy Bow to get the win ahead of his big match with Takeshita on Collision.
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #3: AEW World Tag Team Championship – Brodido def. Claudio Castagnoli & Wheeler Yuta
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Yuta continued to the ring alongside Claudio Castagnoli and Shafir, as they entered through the hostile crowd for the AEW World Tag Team Championship match with Brodido. Even after complaining about his previous run-in with Darby Allin’s tack-covered skateboard, Yuta started the match with ROH World Champion Bandido. Bandido easily handled Yuta early on, much to the chagrin of Castagnoli, who tagged himself in as Brody King did the same in the opposite corner. Castagnoli and King tried to outpower each other, yet neither could gain an advantage until a huge forearm from King put Castagnoli on the mat. Bandido got back in and quickly went to work double-teaming Castagnoli with King. Bandido celebrated with the Macarena. King decided to exit without a dance of his own. While you’d expect a power display from Castagnoli, it was Bandido who showed off by muscling Castagnoli up into a vertical suplex. With the ROH World Champion feeling it, he ascended to the top, but Castagnoli was ready, reversing the momentum in a devastating backbreaker. The Philadelphia crowd continued to express their displeasure with Yuta, so Castagnoli responded by knocking King off the apron with a running big boot. Bandido got enough time to recover and swung the match back in the champions’ favor when he hit a defensive Code Red on Claudio. King tagged back in and came out swinging with chops to both Castagnoli and Yuta before sandwiching them in the corner with a splash followed by a cannonball. Bandido got the tag and the unique offense of Brodido was back on display, including Bandido hitting a head scissors on King, sending him crashing into a downed Castagnoli! You won’t see that anywhere else. Sensing a chance to finish things, Bandido went to the top, but missed a frog splash, which allowed Yuta back into the match. However, King and Bandido were ready, as they had Yuta set up for the Second Shooter, but Shafir grabbed Bandido’s leg to stop it. Castagnoli came flying in with an uppercut to break it all up and then sent King to the outside. With Shafir distracting the referee, Jon Moxley appeared from the aisle and sent King into the steel post. Back in the ring, Bandido was all alone against Castagnoli and Yuta. Castagnoli hit a superplex and then launched Yuta from the top onto Bandido, but he kicked out. A giant swing by Castagnoli into a Yuta dropkick was almost the end, but King broke up the pin. Moxley looked ready to take another shot at King until Darby Allin jumped on his back, taking him out of the mix for good. King slugged Yuta with a huge forearm from the outside, leaving Bandido to hit a 21 Plex for the successful championship defense!
My Score: 4 out of 5
Match #4: Kyle Fletcher, Josh Alexander, and the Young Bucks def. “Hangman” Adam Page, Kenny Omega, and JetSpeed
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
The AEW World Champion “Hangman” Adam Page started things off with the “Walking Weapon” Josh Alexander, in a callback to Alexander’s AEW debut against Page in the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament back in April. Hangman took down Alexander and had an intense staredown with the TNT Champion Kyle Fletcher, but when he turned his back to make a tag, Fletcher attacked from behind. That brought everyone into the ring to throw hands, as Philadelphia roared in approval. After knocking all four of their opponents to the outside, Page, Omega, Bailey, and Knight all hit planchas at the same time. They even took some time to celebrate with the fans, who were whipped into a frenzy. Omega and Page went to work on Alexander back in the ring, making it apparent they had already found their old chemistry. An eyerake by Alexander blinded Omega long enough for Fletcher to go on the attack, which put Kenny in the wrong corner for some time. Omega tagged Speedball, giving their side a glimmer of hope, although Alexander regained control quickly, which allowed Matt Jackson to go to work. Knight entered the fray to give his team some life, buying enough time to tag Hangman back in the match. After eating some offense from the Young Bucks, Page was able to tag in Omega just as Fletcher tagged in for his side. Page and Omega had Fletcher in big trouble until Alexander ripped Page off the apron. Fletcher fought off Omega and followed that with a big dive to Page on the outside. Fletcher went for more on the inside, but Hangman hit a big powerbomb to reverse his fortunes. Eventually, we got back to Alexander and Bailey as the legal men, although they wound up back outside in a dangerous position on the guardrail. Knight came flying off the top and clotheslined Alexander into the front row. Knight turned right into a kick from Nick Jackson and it looked like Bailey would get spiked by the Bucks on the outside, but Nick springboarded into the ring to help Fletcher spike Knight with a piledriver before going back outside to do the same to Bailey. As the match continued, the Bucks hit a foot stomp/powerbomb combo on Bailey. Omega and Fletcher tagged back in, trading reversals until Omega hit Snap Dragon suplexes on Fletcher and Alexander. That brought the Bucks back together with Omega and Page, as the memories of their legendary title match at AEW Revolution 2020 came flooding back with the crowd erupting in a “Holy Shit!” chant. As all four men traded blows, Hangman went for a Buckshot on Matt Jackson, but he ducked as Nick went for his own Buckshot and instead hit Matt! Hangman immediately connected with Nick and Omega followed with a V-Trigger on Matt. It looked like Page and Omega had Matt Jackson set up for the Buckshot/V-Trigger, but Nick made the save and the brothers delivered a pair of superkicks only for Omega and Page to fire back with a pair of clotheslines, as all four men went down. Fletcher tagged back in and the ring was clear for him and Page. A couple of tombstone reversals by both men ended with Fletcher finally hitting the move. Knight made a blind tag and started teeing off on Fletcher, as Bailey came in to go to work with his tag partner. Matt and Nick Jackson got involved long enough for Fletcher to recover, as he avoided the UFO Splash by getting his knees up on Knight. After a running kick in the corner, Fletcher had Knight perched on the top rope, but Bailey came in from the side to hit Fletcher with a Poisonrana only to be met by a pair of superkicks from the Bucks. Matt and Nick took out Omega and Page with dives to the outside before assisting Alexander with a piledriver on Knight. Fletcher finished Knight with his devastating brainbuster to get the win.
My Score: 4 out of 5
Final Verdict: 4/5
This week’s show delivered a chaotic but thrilling night in Philadelphia. Darby Allin’s shocking antics, the hard-hitting tag title defence by Brodido, and Mercedes Moné’s dramatic championship match with a surprise return kept the energy high. The eight-man tag featuring the reunion of Hangman Page and Kenny Omega felt like the emotional centrepiece, only to be overshadowed by a brutal post-match assault that left Omega stretchered out, an angle that immediately raised the stakes heading into All Out. While the show occasionally struggled with pacing and felt overloaded with major angles, it never lacked drama or excitement.