AEW Dynamite Review - April 20, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

CM Punk def. Dustin Rhodes

Rhodes mentioned on last week's Rampage that this was a match he's always wanted and I'm really happy we got it. This wasn't an overly exciting affair, but it wasn't meant to be. They produced a really well wrestled affair with Rhodes proving he can still hang. Meanwhile, the variety in Punk's matches since he returned to wrestling has been excellent. Punk's post-match face-off with Adam Page planted the seeds for their likely AEW World Championship match at Double or Nothing.

Blackpool Combat Club (Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley and ROH Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta) def. Dante Martin, Lee Moriarty and Brock Anderson

I was stoked when Darius Martin returned and Top Flight reunited, but Dante's stock has no doubt taken a hit since then because they've barely been on television and he's been right back in the stepping stone role he was in before. Worse yet, he took the pinfall loss for his team here. The focus was obviously on Blackpool Combat Club, who continue to roll. The AEW World Tag Team Championship should be in their future.

AEW/NJPW Forbidden Door Was Announced for June 26 in Chicago

Much like with the Ring of Honor acquisition last month, it became clear over the last week on social media that Tony Khan's big announcement would likely involve an AEW and New Japan Pro-Wrestling supershow. Sure enough, that's exactly what we're getting in June. The way the announcement was executed was odd with Khan and the NJPW president standing on the stage for nothing while Cole announced the event and Jay White made a surprise appearance, but I'm looking forward to it, nonetheless. The match possibilities are endless. Kazuchika Okada has to be included on the card, right?

Wardlow def. The Butcher

MJF not allowing Wardlow to come out with entrance music reminded me of when he did something similar with Chris Jericho during their feud last summer. This storyline has followed that same blueprint at times, but fans are still super into it and Wardlow has been mega over as a babyface. I can't imagine anyone saw The Butcher as a legitimate threat to Wardlow, but the match was decent and Wardlow won as he should have.

Kyle O'Reilly def. AEW World Tag Team Champion Jungle Boy to Qualify for the Men's Owen Hart Cup

With reDRagon falling short against Jungle Boy last week, I'm actually happy O'Reilly was the one to advance in the Owen Hart Cup. Jungle Boy is one-half of the tag champs anyway, so he should be focusing on that. He should be back in the singles ranks sooner rather than later, but the occasional one-on-one matches for now have allowed him to remind people what he's capable of. This was a quality contest and I'd love to see more of O'Reilly doing more singles stuff in addition to doing reDRagon with Bobby Fish.

Hook def. Anthony Henry

Hook has had a handful of matches on Rampage since late last year, but this actually marked his first match on Dynamite. Henry's no slouch as he's actually a talented competitor, but despite that, Hook made quick work of him. Danhausen showed up afterward to challenge Hook to a match, which should be interesting. I don't know if this will lead to them teaming or not, and if it does, I'm not sure I'm in favor of that idea. Both guys are very popular but for different reasons. I wouldn't get Hook involved too much with the comedy if they're intent on pushing him as a serious competitor.

Men of the Year and Dan Lambert Interrupted AEW TNT Champion Sammy Guevara and Tay Conti

Guevara and Conti were much better off turning heel and that was made apparent by the reaction they received here, but this segment was the drizzling shits. Everything that Guevara and Conti said sounded forced and although Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page came off as babyfaces in their responses, Dan Lambert is still with them. Are crowds expected to cheer him, too? This ended in anticlimactic fashion and I don't have much interest in yet another Guevara vs. Sky match.

Britt Baker def. Danielle Kamela to Qualify for the Women's Owen Hart Cup

Of course, Baker received a hero's welcome in her hometown of Pittsburgh. She even had two players from the Steelers in her corner. Kamela is formerly of WWE NXT fame and might be a familiar face to some. While I thought she had a solid showing, this was all about Baker and getting her into the Owen Hart Cup. It was an average outing. She's usually one of the better talkers in that women's division, but her post-match promo here was not very good. Her being out of breath didn't help, either.

Darby Allin def. Andrade El Idolo in a Coffin Match

I know Andrade beat Allin in the main event of Dynamite at one point, but most weeks, I don't remember this feud is a thing. That's why I think both guys would benefit from moving on to something else after this, and it looks like that'll be the case with The Hardys teasing a match with Allin and Sting afterward. The match itself was entertaining, though I could have booked without the overbooked mess at the beginning. Sting jumping off stuff is impressive and all, but I don't think that needed to happen here. The Andrade Family Office rally has no business being around after this.

Overall Show

Even with the "huge announcement" and several other heavily-hyped matches, I didn't find this week's Dynamite to be as hot as other editions in recent weeks, and that's totally okay. Not every episode is going to be a home run, and that isn't to say this show was poor by any means. The pacing was once again rushed, but the bigger stuff delivered and it was an enjoyable two hours on the whole per usual.

SEE MORE: Dynamite Reviews