AEW Dynamite: Holiday Bash Review - December 22, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Adam Cole def. Orange Cassidy

This match followed the same formula as most of the matches Best Friends have had with The SuperKliq over the last month. The action was entertaining on the whole, but I'm not a big fan of Cole doing the comedy crap, nor was I a big fan of Cassidy kicking out of the Panama Sunrise. This served as setup for the expected AEW debut of Kyle O'Reilly, which the crowd was hot for. I love that the seeds were planted for dissension between The Young Bucks and the original Undisputed Era and am excited to see that story play out.

Bryan Danielson Interrupted AEW World Champion "Hangman" Adam Page

I've said it several times already, but Danielson has been doing exceptional work as a heel over the last month both in the ring and on the mic as seen here. These verbal exchanges between the two continue to be superb. Page cut one of his better promos in recent memory as well. I can't say the promise of judges being at ringside for their rematch on January 5th did much for me, but we'll see what they have in mind. A second straight non-finish would be risky, but I'm not sure how else they get to Battle of the Belts unless it's a different match entirely.

Wardlow def. "Captain" Shawn Dean

I noted in my review of Tuesday's Dark that Dean winning for a change surprised me because he's typically used as an enhancement talent. Well, it took all of 24 hours for him to pop up on Dynamite and immediately lose to Wardlow. Oh well. That said, this was all about Wardlow and continuing his dominance. Let the record show that this was the third squash he's gotten on Dynamite in the last month or so. That's not by accident. AEW is clearly getting closer to him turning babyface and I'm anxiously awaiting that moment.

Dan Lambert Addressed the Audience

This was essentially the same promo we got from Lambert last Friday on Rampage and, again, his usage of insider terms in his promos seems unnecessary. I was his biggest advocate when he first came to AEW and still believe he's a talented talker, but I don't know why he needed to be brought back so soon after getting his comeuppance at Full Gear unless it's just an excuse to get Men of the Year on TV. No one interrupted, so I'm not sure what purpose this was supposed to serve.

Ruby Soho def. Nyla Rose in an AEW TBS Women's Championship Tournament Semifinal Match

Rose's matches tend to be very hit or miss, but I honestly this was one of the best bouts I've seen her have in AEW. She's actually been quite great throughout this entire tournament and deserves props for that. Of course, having an opponent as talented as Soho didn't hurt. This told a solid story and and both women had strong showings. Soho was the right choice to advance and she remains my pick to win the whole thing.

Malakai Black def. Griff Garrison

Black randomly misted Julia Hart two weeks ago and Garrison was out for revenge this week. If you were wondering why Garrison wrestled Black and not Brian Pillman Jr., that's because Garrison is a North Carolina native and that's where this show emanated from. He attempted to score some offense but was quickly dominated by Black, as he should have been. I was hoping we'd see Brody King surface afterward to aid Black in dismantling Varsity Blonds, but maybe it was for the best they held off on this debut considering O'Reilly already debuted earlier in the evening.

CM Punk, Sting and Darby Allin def. The Pinnacle (MJF and AAA World Tag Team Champions FTR)

With the way this was built up, it had a big fight feel and came off like a match worthy of headlining a pay-per-view. The corresponding face paint from the babyfaces was an awesome touch. It went a little longer than it needed to, but I understood and appreciated what they were going for and I thought they delivered. The live crowd sure seemed to think so because they ate this up, especially whenever Sting tagged in. He still looks excellent in these tag team matches, even though he nearly killed MJF at one point when he tossed him out of the ring. That one scary spot aside, this was a wonderful piece of business that sent the crowd home happy for the holidays.

Overall Show

Holiday shows in wrestling aren't typically anything worth writing home about, but this ended up being a very enjoyable Holiday Bash edition of Dynamite. The star-studded main event, the war of words between Page and Danielson, and of course the arrival of O'Reilly were all notable and made for a fun and efficient two hours of wrestling. Soho vs. Rose also had a very well wrestled match and the two squashes were exactly what they needed to be. Next week's show will end the era of Dynamite on TNT, so here's hoping they go out with a bang.

SEE MORE: Dynamite Reviews