AEW Dynamite Review - November 6, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Pac def. Trent

I was really surprised this lasted as long as it did, just because there was zero suspense regarding the outcome. Don't get me wrong, this was very good and I was happy to see Trent score as much offense as he did, but even with interference from Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy, I never once doubted that Pac would win. It didn't help that the finish looked botched with Trent seemingly kicking out of the Red Arrow, which would have been comical if he actually did considering it's one of the most protected moves in all of wrestling.

Cody Addressed AEW World Champion Chris Jericho

Cody received a hero's welcome from the Charlotte crowd and came across like a total star. His big announcement was that he vowed he'd never again vie for the AEW World Championship if he loses at Full Gear. Doesn't that seem a little extreme for a feud that is a month old? I sincerely hope that doesn't mean he's winning the championship at Full Gear, because it's way too soon for that. Otherwise, this was a hell of a promo and I loved how intense and passionate he was.

Private Party def. The Dark Order to Earn Entry Into the AEW World Tag Team Championship Match at Full Gear

This was announced as a "Bronze Medal match," complete with third place medals. I popped for that. Private Party vs. SCU vs. The Lucha Brothers at Full Gear should be great, but why do Lucha Brothers deserve another shot at the straps? I love them as much as the next person, but they lost decisively to SCU last week and should have had to earn another opportunity like Private Party. Nonetheless, this was a fun outing, even though Dark Order do nothing for me. Private Party were the perfect choice to be inserted into the tag title match considering they beat The Young Bucks a month ago.

Emi Sakura and Jamie Hayter def. AEW Women's Champion Riho and Shanna

I'm seriously beginning to question whether these are the only four women, along with Britt Baker, AEW is allowed to feature on Dynamite. They're all talented, but we know nothing about them as characters. Riho and Sakura seem to have quality chemistry together and I'm sure they'll rip it up at Full Gear, but it feels random and fans have been given zero reason to care about their feud. The match existed simply so Sakura could pin Riho and gain a last-minute momentum boost before the pay-per-view.

Shawn Spears def. Brandon Cutler

Whenever you see Cutler already standing in the ring, you know it's going to be a squash. That's exactly what this was as it served as a showcase for Spears ahead of his likely match with Joey Janela at Full Gear. Spears' entrance is amazing and I don't mind his pairing with Tully Blanchard (even though it has yet to be fully explained), but he needs more mic time to really establish himself as a threat. Janela vs. Spears screams pre-show to me.

AEW World Champion Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara def. "Hangman" Adam Page and Kenny Omega

All of these guys are involved in different matches at Full Gear, so it seemed like a weird mix of talent. They worked well together and it was an enjoyable main event, but I thought it was counterproductive for Jericho to Page again, especially since Page is in the process of being built back up. Thankfully, the focus was largely on the big brawl afterward with Jericho, Cody, Omega, Moxley, the Bucks, Santana, Ortiz, MJF and Jake Hager. It was an awesome angle to close out the show with that did more to get me amped for Full Gear than the two hours of programming that preceded it.

Overall Show

I've enjoyed every episode of Dynamite since its launch a month ago, but I can't imagine why anyone would want to pay $50 for Full Gear. I understand All Out being worth that price, but not Full Gear based off the lackluster build the undercard has received up to this point. I'm excited for the bigger matches such as Jericho vs. Cody and Moxley vs. Omega, but I can't say this show did much to sell me on everything else. There was entertaining in-ring action on this episode and the crowd was hot all night long, but the Full Gear hype left a bit to be desired outside of the final few minutes.