AEW Dynamite Review - November 6, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

MVP Accepted Swerve Strickland's Offer to Face Bobby Lashley at Full Gear

Lashley's debut closed last week's Dynamite on a high note, so it was logical to start the show with him and the rest of The Hurt Syndicate this week. The crowd was hot for them, which should come as no surprise considering they were a great group in WWE and fans are excited to see what they can do in AEW. Strickland was held back from going after them, but he did challenge Lashley to a match at Full Gear and MVP accepted on his behalf. I'm definitely looking forward to that one.

Orange Cassidy and Darby Allin vs. AEW World Trios Champions Claudio Castagnoli and Pac

It was refreshing to see Jon Moxley's crew fight notable names for a change and not just undercarders who aren't over. It was the well-wrestled match you'd expect from these four and I appreciated that they worked with such a sense of urgency. The non-finish was lame, but I understand they wanted to play up the chaos and put more heat on the heels, so it was effective in that respect.

The Conglomeration (Tomohiro Ishii, Mark Briscoe and Kyle O'Reilly) def. ROH World Champion "The Learning Tree" Chris Jericho, Big Bill and Bryan Keith in a Fight Without Honor

I liked how the rest of The Conglomeration making the save for Cassidy and Allin seamlessly segued into this match. AEW brought back Ring of Honor specialty Ladder War for Jericho vs. Briscoe two weeks ago and this week it was Fight Without Honor. It was your basic AEW-style brawl and the crowd was into the action. I imagine Ishii pinning Jericho means he's getting the next shot at the ROH World Championship.

Adam Cole def. Malakai Black

I was in attendance for the Extreme Rules match these two had at WWE NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia, which was almost seven years ago now. Crazy how time flies. This was very good stuff, but much like last week with Cole and Black, I could've done without all of the no-selling. The finish was weird because it came off like Black allowed Cole to beat him, so that didn't make Cole look too strong. Cole established afterward that if he and Roderick Strong get three wins each before Full Gear, both of them will face MJF in a three-way match. The lazy booking continues.

"Hangman" Adam Page and Jay White Brawled

Their brawl went from the backstage area to being in front of the crowd. It was a basic way to further the feud and I liked the intensity both men showed. It also made their match official for Full Gear, unless it was already official and I'm just getting my wires crossed. Either way, this was simple and effective stuff. They had an excellent match at WrestleDream and I have no doubt they'll deliver in the rematch.

Hook Interrupted The Patriarchy

Kip Sabian has now joined The Patriarchy after months of being belittled by Christian Cage and the rest of the group. I'd say that was a stupid development, but then again, Nick Wayne followed the exact same formula. Hook tried to get his hands on Christian but was thwarted by the security guards. Honestly, none of this did anything for me. I'm on board for this feud, but it hasn't been terribly exciting so far.

Jamie Hayter def. Penelope Ford

This has been in the works for weeks, and they blew it off in a matter of minutes. Ford had a solid showing and the match was decent, but she wasn't made to look credible in defeat whatsoever. There's zero reason for the rivalry to resume beyond this. Basically, this program has felt like a waste of time. AEW probably isn't ready to put Hayter back in contention for a title yet, but surely they can find something more meaningful for her to do in the meantime.

Ricochet and Powerhouse Hobbs def. The Don Callis Family (AEW International Champion Konosuke Takeshita and Kyle Fletcher)

I fully expected Ricochet's mystery partner to be Will Ospreay, so the fact it was the returning Hobbs (who was a member of The Don Callis Family when we last saw him) was a cool twist. All I ask is that AEW actually push him this time. This was a very entertaining main event and Ricochet pinning Takeshita should earn him another shot at the AEW International Championship. The chaos that ensured afterward made for a hot ending that furthered multiple feuds at once.

Overall Show

While this edition of Dynamite wasn't as eventful or as enjoyable as last week's Fright Night special, it managed to hold up on the whole. The opening and closing segments were the highlights of the night, and while most of the stuff in the middle wasn't anything exceptional, the build for Full Gear was effective and the card is coming together. This was a better effort than a majority of the shows we were getting prior to last week.

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