AEW Dynamite Results: Winners, Live Grades, Reaction and Highlights After Full Gear
The Continental Classic kicked off Wednesday night on Dynamite, with the best wrestlers in the world battling for the right to become the first-ever AEW continental champion, with Eddie Kingston's NEVER Openweight and Ring of Honor world titles also at stake.
The Thanksgiving Eve broadcast saw the first action in the tournament, as well as a championship acceptance speech from "Timeless" Toni Storm and the latest from Christian Cage.
What went down, who earned their first victories in the first-ever tournament, and what does it mean for All Elite Wrestling in the build to World's End on December 30?
Find out with this recap of Wednesday's show.
Continental Classic Lineup, Rules
1 of 10Blue Group
Andrade El Idolo
"The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson
Brody King
Claudio Castagnoli
Daniel Garcia
ROH world champion/NJPW STRONG openweight champion Eddie Kingston
Gold Group
Jay Lethal
Jay White
Jon Moxley
Mark Briscoe
Rush
Swerve Strickland
Rules (from AllEliteWrestling.com)
"Now as for the rules of this tournament, matches will be contested with a 20-minute time limit, there will be no seconds allowed at ringside, and outside interference will not be tolerated, which may throw a monkey wrench in how many of the competitors generally handle their business.
"In addition, the scoring system for the Continental Classic will be very straightforward and simple, with points being awarded as follows: 3 points for a win and 1 point for a draw."
Match Card
2 of 10Announced in advance of Wednesday's show were:
- Continental Classic Gold League: Jon Moxley vs. Mark Briscoe
- Continental Classic Gold League: Swerve Strickland vs. Jay Lethal
- Continental Classic Gold League: Rush vs. Jay White
- Orange Cassidy, Hook, and Katsuyori Shibata vs. Matt Menard, Angelo Parker, and Jake Hager
- Ruby Soho vs. Skye Blue vs. Anna Jay
- "Timeless" Toni Storm's Championship Acceptance Speech
- Christian Cage rechristens Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus
Continental Classic Gold League: Swerve Strickland vs. Jay Lethal
3 of 10
On the heels of the sadistic Texas deathmatch at Full Gear that saw him defeat Hangman Page, Swerve Strickland became the first competitor to win points in the Continental Classic, defeating Jay Lethal in the round-robin tournament opener Wednesday night.
It should not be much of a surprise to anyone that Strickland and Lethal had a great contest, focused on the idea of each competitor exploiting the other's injury and ended with Strickland delivering a double stomp for the pinfall.
Kicking off Dynamite with the most buzzworthy star from the latest pay-per-view was the right call and Strickland did not disappoint. The fans in Chicago were behind him and greeted him with an enormous pop, making the opener feel like an even bigger deal.
A great start to the show.
Result
Strickland defeated Lethal
Grade
B+
Top Moments and Takeaways
- The pop for Strickland was enormous and the crowd kept that energy with "Swerve's House" chants.
- Strickland and Lethal formed the framework of the match by targeting each other's injuries: Strickland's right shoulder and Lethal's left knee.
- Swerve is about to be the most organic babyface on this show.
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MJF and Adam Cole Promo
4 of 10
Better Than You, Bay Bay limped their way to the ring, just days after MJF injured his hip in his successful AEW World Championship defense against Jay White, during which tag team partner Adam Cole interfered.
After some banter, MJF made reference to the devil and was interrupted by the mysterious masked Devil, who simply laughed at his assertion that he wants nothing to do with The People's Scumbag.
This brought out Samoa Joe, whom MJF tried to screw out of his world title shot before Cole talked him into being a man of his word.
Eventually, a match for World's End was agreed to, but not before Joe vowed to destroy MJF in his hometown and take the gold.
The biggest question here is why Cole would be insistent on MJF honoring his agreement with Samoa Joe for a world title match. And isn't it convenient that, when MJF grew close to The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass, they were attacked by The Devil and his minions, thus leaving the champ with no choice but to turn to Joe?
We could be getting close to finding out who is behind the mask, and it would not be surprising if it was some sort of maniacal plan concocted by a manipulative Cole.
Or maybe it's just Jack Perry, in the most unexciting possible outcome.
Anyway, this was a multi-layered segment that accomplished a few different things and got MJF on the screen despite his injury.
Good stuff, even if the MJF-Cole partnership appears to have cooled compared to what it was two or three months ago.
Grade
B+
Top Moments and Takeaways
- "When I was born, the devil let out a furious scream. Do you know why? Because that guy didn't want any competition," MJF said before being interrupted by AEW's masked Devil, who laughed.
- "You wouldn't be the first Ring of Honor legend I beat here in Chicago, twice," MJF said in reference to his two victories over CM Punk.
- "Everywhere you go, I'll be a few steps behind," Joe warned MJF, vowing to have his back until World's End in Long Island, before beating him and taking the AEW World Championship.
Trios Match
5 of 10
AEW international champion Orange Cassidy followed up his victory over Jon Moxley at Full Gear by teaming with FTW champion Hook and Ring of Honor Pure champion Katsuyori Shibata to defeat "Daddy Magic" Matt Menard, "Cool Hand" Angelo Parker, and Jake Hager in a trios match.
It was a fun bout that let the former Jericho Appreciation Society members get a bit of shine before the babyfaces exploded back into the match and secured the win via a simultaneous Redrum and sleeper from Hook and Shibata.
This did not further any ongoing stories or make anyone look better or worse than they did prior to the match.
It was good fun and beyond that, featured the much-anticipated return of Danhausen, who delivered a curse to Hager amid a big pop from the Chicago fans.
Result
Hook, Shibata, and Cassidy defeated Hager, Menard, and Parker
Grade
C+
Top Moments and Takeaways
- Cassidy paid off his mention of a surprise in an earlier backstage vignette when...
- ...Danhausen made his return. Three weeks too late, but a return nonetheless. The creative there may have been weak, but the Halloween III-inspired presentation was great.
- Danhausen broke out Hager's favorite purple hat and, when confronted, cursed the former world champion.
Christian Cage Rechristens Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus
6 of 10
On the heels of a Full Gear loss to Adam Copeland, Sting, and Darby Allin, TNT champion Christian Cage led Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus to the ring with the intent of rechristening them.
He did so, rebranding Luchasaurus as "Killswitch" and Wayne as "The Prodigy," but not before humiliating the former in a way that will likely only continue to drum up tension within the group.
Shayna Wayne, Nick's mom, interrupted proceedings but ended up catching an errant blow from Killswitch before a teased con-chair-to.
Adam Copeland made the save, delivered two Spears and a con-chair-to of his own, and stood tall as the commentary team attempted to cover up for The Rated R Superstar brutalizing the young competitor in front of his own mother.
This was an interesting segment.
Cage is a great heel but did Luchasaurus really need to be rebranded into something far more generic? What was the point in calling Wayne something he already had been referred to?
How did Copeland not realize Shayna was in the ring as he attacked her son when he slid right past her to wipe him out with the first Spear?
It continued the feud but did so in a rather clunky fashion. Hopefully, this all leads to Copeland vs. Cage at World's End.
Grade
C
Top Moments and Takeaways
- "I can tell you in all honesty and sincerity that I did not lose that match," Cage said after building up the importance of admitting when one loses. "Nick Wayne did not lose that match. Luchasaurus lost that match."
- Cage ordered Luchasaurus to a knee and proceeded to rename him "Killswitch." He then ordered Wayne to his feet and labeled him "The Prodigy." One was fine, the other was a letdown considering the commentary team has repeatedly labeled him The Prodigy.
- Cage told Shayna that her late husband, Buddy, would have been disowned by his son. "Go punch your card because your shift is about to begin at Denny's," he told her.
- The bump by Shayna into the ropes was nasty.
Continental Classic Gold League: Rush vs. 'Switchblade' Jay White
7 of 10
"Switchblade" Jay White earned three points in the Continental Classic by way of a pinfall victory over Rush, defeating El Toro Blanco with Blade Runner following a well-timed and undetected low blow.
This was a competitive match between two men who did a solid job of putting over the physical exhaustion experienced after their disappointing nights at Full Gear.
It put over White as a resourceful heel who will still find a way to cheat and win, even if he cannot rely on outside interference from his Bullet Club Gold cronies. It was a great bounce-back victory for one of the top guys in the company after losing to MJF at Full Gear.
For Rush, it was another disappointing loss despite a performance solidifying him as a premier wrestler in AEW.
Result
White pinned Rush
Grade
B+
Top Moments and Takeaways
- Backstage, Renee Paquette caught up with Hager, Menard, Parker and Anna Jay. The latter asked Parker if he was really in her corner in the night's Three-Way women's division match. She said she would be, despite receiving a phone call at the same time from Ruby Soho.
- It took too long for the commentary team to remember that Rush fought in a ladder match at Full Gear and was just as worn down as White, who lost to a guy on one leg and with a dislocated hip.
Sky Blue vs. Ruby Soho vs. Anna Jay
8 of 10
The match was nowhere as good as it may have been, thanks to an overabundance of attention paid to the ongoing Soho-Angelo Parker romance storyline.
So much focus was on that story, and the interactions between the two of them, Saraya and Matt Menard at ringside that the actual bout became secondary.
Blue winning was important, especially if things are heading in the direction of her challenging Storm for the AEW Women's World Championship, but how seriously is she being taken when the latest chapter in a love story supersedes her continued rise?
Result
Blue defeated Jay and Soho
Grade
C
Top Moments and Takeaways
- Prior to the match, Toni Storm made her championship acceptance speech before her exit was cut off by the arrival of Blue in a brief interaction that teased the Chicago native as the next contender to the title.
- Blue is quickly developing into a really good worker. To see where she is now in comparison to where she was a year ago is like night and day. She is going to be world champion sooner rather than later.
- Menard grabbed Soho's leg, igniting an argument between himself and Saraya at ringside. On the other side of the ring, Blue kicked Soho into the arms of Parker, which only made matters worse.
Continental Classic Gold Round: Jay Briscoe vs. Jon Moxley
9 of 10
A long-running show hampered the main event of this week's broadcast, which saw Jon Moxley defeat Mark Briscoe to earn three points in the Continental Classic.
More rushed than it otherwise might have been, it was still a grueling battle between a former world champion and one of the most respected and influential wrestlers of the last two decades.
Briscoe showed great toughness while absorbing everything thrown at him and only succumbed to Moxley after a stomp and the second Death Rider of the match.
Moxley winning felt like a foregone conclusion so that was no surprise, but it's time to start doing something of meaning with Briscoe because these high-profile losses do add up.
Result
Moxley defeated Briscoe
Grade
B
Top Moments and Takeaways
- This one started really late in the show as the commentary team promised the audience the show would go on until there was a winner.
- Oh look, a Moxley match with blood. Even if it was Briscoe this time, it's beyond unnecessary at this point and only suggests the two guys fighting cannot drum up drama on their own, which is ridiculous considering who they are and how long they have been doing this.
- The crowd came alive for a late near-fall in which Briscoe kicked out after a Death Rider.
- Moxley delivering a stomp and Taz responding with, "Ha ha ha, look at that" was certainly a moment.
Overall Grade
10 of 10The biggest draw of Wednesday's broadcast was the Continental Classic, yet it felt like those matches were shorter in time, especially the two that came after the opener due to the need to get two long-winded promo segments on the show.
This show was interrupted by angle-heavy segments that could have taken up a lot less time than they did.
What went down between the ropes was very good, but it could have been even more so had AEW not had to make time for other segments elsewhere.
The show gets an above-average score because of its in-ring quality.
Grade: B
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