AEW Dynamite: Maximum Carnage Review - January 14, 2026

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Darby Allin def. Pac

Allin's rivalry with The Death Riders peaked months ago, but I appreciate the story they've been trying to tell as of late with Allin wanting to avenge his loss to Pac from Full Gear. This had the expected stupid spots from an Allin match, but it was also a well-worked opener on the whole. Death Riders remain intact despite all of them losing to Allin, so all this really accomplished was giving Allin a momentum boost. As long as Allin moves on, I'm content.

"Hangman" Adam Page def. Bryan Keith; The Don Callis Family Interrupted Kenny Omega

Samoa Joe put a bounty out on Page, so it was only fitting that the "Bounty Hunter" himself Bryan Keith accepted. Ideally, Keith will go back to that gimmick permanently because it's much better than whatever he's been doing with Big Bill for the last two years. Anyway, this was a nice outing from these two and I liked that Keith had a solid showing in defeat, despite the result never being in doubt. Post-match, Page, Swerve Strickland and Omega took turns discussing their intentions to challenge for the AEW World Championship. Meanwhile, I'm tired of Omega feuding with The Don Callis Family, but I am looking forward to Omega facing Josh Alexander next week.

Brody King def. Jon Cruz

This is the second standby we've seen on Dynamite in recent weeks. Apparently King is the only one who can have standby matches. Hey, at least they kept this thing short and sweet with King dominating Cruz, who was involved in that segment with MJF and King's tag team partner Bandido on last week's Dynamite. King is clearly being built up for his own shot at the AEW World title.

Davis & Doyle def. JetSpeed, GOA, and The Young Bucks in an AEW World Tag Team Championship No. 1 Contender's Four-Way Tag Team Match

AEW's tag team division is definitely back on the ascent and this match was proof of that. The non-stop action was entertaining and everyone got a chance to shine. Unfortunately, Davis & Doyle winning was the least interesting outcome they could have gone with. Okay, it might be better than getting the Bucks vs. FTR again, but Davis & Doyle are heels and so are FTR. Plus, they just aren't doing anything for me as a team yet. I guess the idea was to establish them with a win here, but what happens when they inevitably lose? Hopefully they can get that over with quickly and move on.

Triangle of Madness (Thekla and Sisters of Sin) def. AEW Women's World Champion Kris Statlander and AEW Women's World Tag Team Champions Babes of Wrath

The only acceptable ending to this match was Triangle of Madness winning, and not only did that happen, Thekla pinned Statlander, so if it wasn't already obvious, she's getting the next opportunity at the AEW Women's World Championship. It also sets up Sisters of Sin challenging Babes of Wrath for the AEW Women's World Tag Team Championship, too. This was a good effort from these six stars and exactly what it needed to be.

AEW World Champion MJF def. ROH World Champion Bandido (ROH World Championship Was Not Defended)

No one honestly believed Bandido was walking away with the AEW World Championship, but I was excited to see how well he'd mesh with MJF. Unsurprisingly, they had great chemistry. This started out slow, but once they picked up the pace, it was a blast. This should be the first of more AEW World Championship matches to come for Bandido, not in the immediate future but down the road. With King saving Bandido from MJF afterward, I assume we'll get MJF vs. King at some point in the next month before Revolution.

Overall Show

Unlike other recent special editions of Dynamite, this show actually felt somewhat, well, special. We had an above-average AEW World Championship main event, new number one contenders to the AEW World Tag Team Championship crowned and other quality wrestling, along with the announcement that The Rascalz are coming to AEW (which is awesome news). I enjoyed this episode and hope that they can maintain the momentum during this lengthy stretch in between pay-per-views.

SEE MORE: Dynamite Reviews