AEW Dynamite Review - April 23, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

AEW International Champion Kenny Omega, Swerve Strickland and AEW World Trios Champions The Opps Fended Off The Death Riders and The Elite

For as much as I despise the Death Riders and Elite alliance, admittedly, this was a strong segment because it was so chaotic. It sure does seem like we're headed for some sort of Anarchy in the Arena at Double or Nothing with all of these guys, and I can't say I'm stoked for that, but this did make sense. Notably, we found out Jon Moxley will defend the AEW World Championship against Samoa Joe on the May 14th edition of Dynamite.

Mark Briscoe def. Ricochet

Briscoe has been firmly established as a popular performer who never really wins when it matters most yet doesn't lack credibility. That's why I automatically assumed he was losing here, so the fact he actually won was a pleasant surprise. They had a very good match to boot. Ricochet immediately attacked Briscoe afterward, so I'm sure he'll be fine. Plus, a program between him and Knight (stemming from Knight being a part of the winning team in that eight-man tag team match for $400,00 a few weeks ago) has potential.

The Paragon Saved The Rock 'N' Roll Express from FTR

How many segments have we seen with FTR and Rock 'N' Roll Express over the years? I'm shocked we haven't gotten a match between them on AEW TV, though it might be too late for that. Nonetheless, this was well done with more put being heat on FTR and The Paragon coming out to further that feud. We also found out that Stokley Hathaway is FTR's new manager, which is an interesting pairing.

The Young Bucks def. Kevin Knight and "Speedball" Mike Bailey

I can't recall too many above-average matches the Bucks have had in recent years, but it felt like we were watching the Bucks of old in this match. I don't know if that's because of who they were facing or because they're going to put forth more of an effort this time around, but regardless of the reason, this was a ton of fun. Knight and Bailey were made to look credible in defeat, so while I would've preferred to see the babyfaces go over, they didn't lose much here.

MJF Attempted to Bribe The Hurt Syndicate

MJF is doing an outstanding job of trying to butter up Hurt Syndicate so they'll accept him into their ranks. He's always been cool with MVP, but he's had a tougher time convincing Shelton Benjamin and Bobby Lashley that he's worth trusting. MJF finally managed to win over Benjamin, but despite offering Lashley a new car, MJF was still denied. This was entertaining television with everyone playing their roles well.

The Don Callis Family (Josh Alexander and Konosuke Takeshita) def. Brody King and Will Ospreay

I was hoping we'd see Alexander in WWE (specifically in NXT) once he left TNA, but honestly, he has been the perfect fit for AEW so far. I'm glad he scored the win for his team here in what was a top-notch match with all four guys working really well together. The Don Callis Family get a bit of a momentum boost while Ospreay is protected because he wasn't pinned and is in the finals of the men's Owen Hart Cup, anyway.

Jamie Hayter def. Kris Statlander in a Women's Owen Hart Cup Semifinal Match

I loved that there was uncertainty surrounding the outcome to this main event. Hayter vs. Mercedes Mone was the match I wanted to see at Double or Nothing, but I wouldn't have complained about another round from Mone and Statlander. This was fantastic stuff with plenty of back-and-forth action. Hayter is finally getting back to where she was prior to her injury.

Overall Show

This show had the tall task of following up last week's awesome episode, and while it wasn't quite on the same level, this was still a great match. Everything flowed nicely and there wasn't anything I had an issue with. We got the usual quality wrestling and there was successful storyline progression as well. We'll see what kind of card they can put together for Double or Nothing. Hopefully they can keep trending in the right direction.

SEE MORE: Dynamite Reviews