AEW Dynamite Review - October 9, 2019

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Private Party def. The Young Bucks in an AEW World Tag Team Championship Tournament Quarterfinal Match​

In case you didn't already know, Private Party are a tremendous tag team. I've seen some of their matches on the northeast independent scene and they never cease to impress me. They've worked with the Bucks before, so it should have come as no surprise that their chemistry was off the charts here. The action was incredible exciting and the crowd was hot for everything they did. My sole nitpick of this was how both tandems hit everything in their arsenals, yet it was a roll-up that won the match for Private Party. Other than that, this was a hell of a way to kick off the night and it was a huge win for Private Party. Of course, they have to come out on top in two more matches, but to say they've beaten the Bucks is a major feather in their cap.

The Inner Circle Explained Their Actions

The stable of Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, Jake Hager, Santana and Ortiz are now known collectively as The Inner Circle. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of the name, but I do like the idea of the five of them forming a faction, as long as the entire promotion isn't built around them. Faction wars have gotten out of hand in the past with companies such as WCW and TNA, so hopefully that won't be the case with Inner Circle vs. The Elite. This was a great promo from Jericho, who introduced everyone in the group and gave reasons a little insight on all of them. Jericho is absolutely in his element as a a top heel and I hope he's AEW World Championship for a while to come.

Darby Allin def. Jimmy Havoc in an AEW World Championship No. 1 Contender's Match

I'm not sure what earned these two an opportunity to possibly compete for the AEW World Championship when someone such as Pac is undefeated with wins over Kenny Omega and Adam Page. I wouldn't mind it as much if Tony Khan and Cody hadn't talked so much about how wins and losses matter and how statistics will be implemented at some point. Other than that, this was a pretty good match. Havoc is talented, but Allin is easy to root for and has had more standout showings so far in AEW. They worked a nice pace and Allin going over was the right call.

AEW Women's Champion Riho and Britt Baker def. Bea Priestley and Emi Sakura

I might be in the minority here, but I wasn't a big fan of this match. It was decent enough, but there was zero reason to care. Are Baker and Priestley feuding because Priestley accidentally injured Baker a few months ago? Has that been made clear yet? We haven't heard from Priestley, Sakura or even Riho on the mic yet, so again, there was no reason for viewers to get invested in any of these women.

Jon Moxley def. Shawn Spears

Spears has been infinitely more interesting since turning heel a few months ago than he ever was doing the "Perfect 10" shtick in WWE. Tully Blanchard serving as his manager still feels random to me, and it's not like his interference has helped him win any matches. Nonetheless, this was a quality contest. Moxley hasn't missed a beat despite missing a month or two due to injury. Moxley and Kenny Omega nearly came to blows afterward, but Pac put a stop to it. A three-way match between them would be terrific.

The Inner Circle def. Adam Page and Dustin Rhodes

Jericho and Guevara represented The Inner Circle here with Jake Hager in their corner. Page and Rhodes made for a better team than I thought and worked well together, while Jericho and Guevara were a cohesive unit as well. On the whole, it was an entertaining main event with Jericho winning again as he should have. That's how you make a world champion look strong. Cody, Dustin, the Bucks and MJF were able to get some retribution post-match by fending off The Inner Circle, and multiple matches (Bucks vs. LAX, Cody vs. Jericho, Page vs. Hager) were built toward in the process. I don't think every episode needs to end with a brawl, but it was a hot angle, if nothing else.

Overall Show

I was fortunate enough to be in attendance for this episode and had a blast. The audience was electric all night long and most of the matches delivered. If AEW can keep it up with the logical storytelling and enjoyable in-ring action, they'll remain a real alternative to WWE and all the other promotions out there. It wasn't an amazing edition of Dynamite by any stretch, but everything made sense, certain stories were progressed, and the opener was just outstanding. The hype for next week's show was also well done, but I question leaving The Lucha Brothers and Jurassic Express off again. They're two of the most popular acts in the company and were nowhere to be seen. Otherwise, this was another excellent effort from AEW.