AEW Dynamite: Title Tuesday Review - October 10, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Buy-In: ROH World Champion and NJPW Strong Openweight Champion Eddie Kingston def. Minoru Suzuki

Tony Khan announced this match last night on social media. If we're getting the WWE vs. AEW "war" back for one night only (I don't count WWE's pay-per-views airing opposite of AEW Collision because that isn't comparable), then it was wise for AEW to air what would typically be their dark match (and no, this wouldn't have been the dark match if it didn't air). They had the hard-hitting affair you'd expect from them. Suzuki was never going to win because, well, when does he in AEW? But this was a treat for what it was. Jay Lethal's goof troop was watching from the back, so one of them will likely be next to challenge Kingston.

Bryan Danielson def. Swerve Strickland in an AEW TNT Championship No. 1 Contender's Match

This was the perfect match to open the show because it ended up being the best bout of the night and it gave them a chance to go out there and do their thing. Both guys are killing it right now and they produced a very enjoyable opener. I assumed Danielson would go over because a heel vs. heel dynamic with Strickland and Christian Cage would've been weird, but I'm glad Adam Page cost Strickland the win because it protected him in defeat. Danielson will get his title shot on Saturday's Collision.

Powerhouse Hobbs def. Chris Jericho

This was never going to be what Danielson vs. Strickland was, but I loved its layout. They got the time they needed to tell the story of Hobbs being dominant and going over decisively. This was huge for him, provided it's followed up on accordingly. I'm all for him getting an actual push this time because AEW clearly hasn't had the slightest idea of what to do with him this past year. Jericho loses nothing in defeat here.

Orange Cassidy def. Rey Fenix to Win the AEW International Championship

It was announced during The Buy-In that Jon Moxley still wasn't medically cleared, so Cassidy was granted a rematch at the title. He had an amazing first run with it for almost a year, but why have him regain it here? He gains nothing from holding it again. Maybe Fenix is hurt and he had to lose it on this show no matter what, but I would've preferred someone else taking the title from him. On the bright side, this was a fun sprint.

Wardlow def. Matt Sydal

This was a repeat of what we saw from Wardlow last week with him making quick work of his opponent and storming out of the ring and through the crowd as soon as it was over. I'm going to guess he'll be a heel going forward and that's fine by me. He needs some serious rebuilding if fans are going to take him seriously. This has been an acceptable reintroduction for him so far, but the question is he can sustain the momentum.

Jay White def. "Hangman" Adam Page

I believe these two first faced off five years ago when they were both in Ring of Honor. Man, how much they've evolved since then, specifically White. This was the terrific match I expected from them. White is the one challenging for the AEW World Championship at Full Gear, so he had to win, and the interference wasn't ideal, but Strickland getting involved was logical after what happened earlier on. I appreciated MJF getting serious during his post-match verbal exchange with White, but that line about quarters from Juice Robinson was a tad tasteless in my opinion.

Hikaru Shida def. Saraya to Win the AEW Women's World Championship

It's wild that Saraya's television time has actually decreased since she won the title at All In now that The Outcasts are no longer a thing, or at least not with Toni Storm involved. Thus, I'm not upset she lost the title so soon after winning it, but why back to Shida? Why not keep it on Shida in the first place? Why not have Saraya lose it to someone that hasn't held it before like Willow Nightingale? With all of that said, they had a great match here and both women deserve credit for that.

Adam Copeland def. Luchasaurus

I always thought Copeland would be a strange fit for AEW because of the style of match he wrestles (slow, methodical, occasionally melodramatic, etc). It worked here with him having to fight from underneath against the monster Luchasaurus and they had a very good main event, but I'm curious to see how he matches up against the rest of the roster. I could have done without the chaotic brawl that closed the show. Keeping the focus on Copeland-Christian Cage stuff would have been enough. Blackpool Combat Club entering the fray was unnecessary.

Overall Show

NXT had more of a star-studded show, whereas Dynamite had more of the straightforward "wrestling" show, and I thoroughly enjoyed both. This honestly felt like your typical Dynamite with some higher-profile matches and I mean that as a compliment. NXT is guaranteed to win in the ratings, but does it really matter at the end of the day? The best thing AEW can do is deliver its own consistently strong show and I thought they did that tonight with Title Tuesday. Having two titles change hands didn't hurt (even if I wasn't in favor of who won each belt).

SEE MORE: Dynamite Reviews