AEW Dynamite Review - December 4, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Shelton Benjamin def. Kyle Fletcher in a Continental Classic Blue League Match

Benjamin is one of those guys who I don’t see winning the whole tournament yet I’m looking forward to every match he’s going to have as part of it. This was one of them. Fletcher shouldn’t be losing this early in the Continental Classic after beating Will Ospreay clean at Full Gear, so this was the correct outcome. This was a very enjoyable outing from these two and I’m glad they got as much time as they did.

The Patriarchy Attacked Hook

I was fully in favor of Hook feuding with Christian Cage a few months ago, but it’s gotten to the point where I just don’t care. They're taking their time getting to Hook vs. Christian, so we're getting Hook vs. Nick Wayne first. This was a straightforward segment to build to that and put heat on the heels. I appreciate what they're trying to do with Hook, but I don't see how he's really benefiting from this program so far.

Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly Were the Last Remaining Competitors in the Dynamite Dozen Battle Royale

Amazingly, Cole vs. MJF feels less and less like a big deal the closer we get to it. The Dynamite Dozen Battle Royal has been held annually for the last five years. Not only has it never really meant much, this year's was obviously a vehicle to get to Cole vs. O'Reilly at Winter Is Coming with the winner going on to face MJF at Worlds End. Most Battle Royals follow the same formula, but this was one of the most lifeless I've seen in some time. It was a total waste of time.

Swerve Strickland def. Max Caster

Caster's new gimmick is apparently that he's an annoying prick that gets on everyone's nerves, including Anthony Bowens and Billy Gunn. I had no interest in this being competitive, so I'm glad Strickland beat him rather quickly and decisively. Strickland is a former AEW World Champion after all. I'm curious if Strickland and Bobby Lashley run it back at Worlds End because they haven't had a whole lot of interaction since Full Gear.

Jay White def. AEW World Trios Champion Pac

This felt like it could've been a Continental Classic match. Put two excellent wrestlers in the ring together and watch them shine. I was worried it might have fluky finish once Wheeler Yuta attempted to interfere, but White won clean, regardless. Adam Page and Orange Cassidy also attacked The Death Riders afterward. I thought we might get Jon Moxley vs. White one-on-one in a straight-up singles match for the AEW World Championship at Worlds End, but now I'm starting to think it will be a four-way instead.

Anna Jay def. Penelope Ford

This felt like such a random match to throw out there on Dynamite, but Mariah May and Mina Shirakawa had a pre-taped segment, so the one obligatory women's match on the show went to the women involved in the AEW TBS Championship picture. This was perfectly fine for what it was. Jay was established as Mercedes Mone's next challenger and we'll get that matchup in two weeks on the Holiday Bash edition of Dynamite.

AEW World Trios Champion Claudio Castagnoli def. Brody King in a Continental Classic Gold League Match

King beat Castagnoli in last year's Continental Classic (which I totally forgot about until I was reminded of it), so it was logical for Castagnoli to avenge that loss here. While this didn't feel like a main event on paper, they unsurprisingly delivered a main event-quality contest. This was great stuff. It's pretty cool King got to headline Dynamite two weeks in a row. I'm not expecting him to get any sort of sustained singles push after this thing is over, though.

Overall Show

If you aren't a fan of the Continental Classic, you probably won't have much of an incentive to tune into AEW programming until after its over at Worlds End. Those matches will be carrying Dynamite for the next several weeks and that was certainly the case with this edition, making for one of the better all-around episodes in recent memory. I'm still struggling to get invested in the stuff with Hook and The Patriarchy as well as Cole and MJF, but the rest of this show was solid and was bookended by two above-average matchups.

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