AEW Dynamite Review - November 26, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Kyle Fletcher def. AEW Unified Champion Kazuchika Okada in a Continental Classic Gold League Match

This was the perfect match to kick off this year's Continental Classic after the tension that was teased between Okada and Fletcher (as well as Konosuke Takeshita) backstage at Full Gear. I totally forgot that Fletcher beat Okada during last year's Continental Classic and I loved that he beat him again here. Okada is obviously making it to the finals again, but will he avenge these losses to Fletcher before then? This was another excellent outing from them, as you'd expect.

Babes of Wrath def. Sisters of Sin in an AEW Women's World Tag Team Championship Tournament Semifinal Match

This was a decent match on the whole, but there were definitely a few sloppy spots (specifically from Sisters of Sin) that took it down a notch. I wasn't a fan of the outcome, though. Willow Nightingale and Harley Cameron work well together, but Skye Blue and Julia Hart are much more of an actual team, so I personally would have rather seen them advance.

Swerve Strickland and "Hangman" Adam Page Interrupted AEW World Champion and AEW World Trios Champion Samoa Joe's Celebration

While watching this celebration, it dawned on me that it would have been refreshing if Powerhouse Hobbs was the one to dethrone Page as champ, not Joe. I absolutely love Joe and am excited to see him getting another title run, but I can't help but think it would have been a nice boost for Hobbs, who's been in a background role for far too long. Nonetheless, this was a solid segment to establish The Opps' new enemies in Page and Strickland, though an actual explanation from Hook for his heel turn would've been appreciated.

Jon Moxley def. Mascara Dorada in a Continental Classic Blue League Match; "Timeless" Toni Storm Confronted Moxley and Marina Shafir

I honestly have little interest in Moxley competing in the Continental Classic for the third year in a row. Kyle O'Reilly would have been a better fit for the spot had he not been written off television with an injury after being attacked by Moxley at Full Gear. This was well wrestled, but I never bought into the idea of Dorada winning. Meanwhile, Storm choosing a Death match as the stipulation for her and Mina Shirakawa's tournament semifinal match against Shafir and Mina Shirakawa next week was the least surprising thing on this entire episode.

Kevin Knight def. Darby Allin in a Continental Classic Gold League Match

Knight and Mike Bailey are awesome additions to the Continental Classic this year, and I'm looking forward to them going one-on-one as part of it at some point in the coming weeks. I assumed Allin would win here after losing to Pac at Full Gear, but apparently not. That said, I'm not complaining because this was a huge win for Knight, and the match itself was a lot of fun for as long as it lasted.

Claudio Castagnoli def. Orange Cassidy in a Continental Classic Blue League Match

I know it was said that Cassidy wanted this match moved up to the beginning of the Continental Classic because of The Death Riders' attack on O'Reilly at Full Gear, but I would've rather they waited because we just got Cassidy vs. Castagnoli a few weeks ago, and this wasn't much different than any of their other encounters. Granted, it was a quality contest, but it wasn't the most exciting way to close the show, nor was the subsequent brawl with the competitors in the Continental Classic.

Overall Show

The Continental Classic is always great for the wrestling, but its lack of meaningful stakes has historically made for an inconsistent stretch of shows heading into Worlds End where the focus is primarily on the Continental Classic and not much else. It was understandable for this edition of Dynamite with it being the kickoff to the tournament, but there needs to be a better balance on upcoming episodes. I enjoyed this installment, primarily for the opener and Allin vs. Knight.

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