Darby Allen/Ricky Starks
First of all, I'd just like to say I slept on Ricky. I saw him on NWA a few times and I never really paid him much attention. Honestly, I barely paid attention to him the first couple times he was on Dynamite. People raved about his match with Cody during the TNT Challenge era, but I just didn't see it. I don't know why exactly, but he just never did anything I thought was that great.
I was so wrong. So he and Darby have been going back and forth since ~mid July, trading insane blows back and forth. Tonight was, and I hope this is true, not the end of this feud. If it is, that's fine, I accept it, but much like with MJF and Jungle Boy, I am left desperately wanting more.
This match was just mega hard hitting, they were slapping each other at one point and it was vicious. I think they've been trading real blows a lot. Like, I kind of feel like on some level they really do kind of hate each other. If they don't, it's wrestling magic. After a lot of very fun back and forth, Darby gets the pin with a coffin drop that looked like it nearly killed Ricky. Please give me more of this.
At one point Cage came out but got stopped by Hobbs while Ricky was on the outside. This was a little unnecessary but I think they just want to remind us that they're working together right now because the whole Archer/COVID thing happened. I don't mind it for that reason. I can see why it might annoy someone not looking at the storyline that way though.
Cody Accepts
Cody comes out-- and I think this is the first time in Jacksonville they've had him come out of the middle if I'm not mistaken. Obviously not the lift like they would use in the old live shows, but a comfortable feeling of the old times.
Cody does some weird thing about "going to hollywood" but feeling like he didn't belong there because Brodie beat him in three minutes. He says "no" to the dog collar match, walks away, then runs back to say "NO, AS IN NO REGRETS, NO AS IN NO LOOKING BACK, WE ENTER MUCH DIFFERENT THAN WE LEAVE, TNT TITLE, DOG COLLAR MATCH, NEXT WEEK, IIIII ACCEPT". Honestly fuck me that last bit was so intense. Then Brodie comes out and they brawl for like 10 minutes. At one point, Nyla grabs Kilynn and just beats the shit out of her for some reason. No idea what that was about, Kilynn isn't even signed. I wish she WAS. Maybe this is leading to a thing with her and Nyla? They didn't follow up on it tonight, maybe next week or on Dark.
Tony & FTR
Tony comes out to talk with FTR for a little but, FTR jabbers about Best Friends, saying they're not on their level etc. Some shots about the Young Bucks, saying they need to earn it and stop being Meltzer's pets. As they're going on, Matt comes up out of nowhere with "Nick"* and superkicks Tony Schiavone. Tony takes this like a fucking champ. Matt walks off and then FTR call them out, saying hey stop beating up randos, we're right here!
*Nick has not appeared in person besides a brief thing on BTE since two weeks ago. Hey may be sick or he may have just not been there last week for the live show and taping. Considering the COVID blow up a couple weeks ago, he may be out just for his families' sake. Unclear. It is not commented on nor really noticed by anyone so far.
Dasha With SCU
SCU basically say they're gonna get their title back. That's all really-- they see Shawn Spears outside the curtain who gives them an ominous "Good luck....". Since Tully got FTR Shawn hasn't had much to do. Wonder where he's going.
SCU/FTR
Kazarian put on a great show with Hangman two weeks ago, and now he's back with Scorpio for a "Brush with Greatness" as SCU calls it. Early on, they fake a hit from Christopher Daniels to get him thrown out by the ref. Degeneracy. CD is gone. SCU has this match under their control for like 95% of the time. There's some double-teaming from FTR towards the end, but Sky had the win once but Cash was distracting the ref.
Honestly, as someone who routinely does not care very much about SCU as a tag team (Scorpio is fine, not been given anything really spectacular since his bought with Scorpio and his little mini run with Cody), I thought they were spectacular in this match. They really brought out everything they had, and the ref counted Scorpio out DESPITE Tully pulling Scorpios leg off the rope AND his OTHER foot being ON the rope. FTR is the biggest bunch of weenies on earth.
I should mention-- Hangman was on commentary for this match but it was easy to forget this as he wasn't nearly as lively there as Omega had been. He mostly refuted Omega being done with their tag team, but then got shocked and saddened when he found out at the end that they were having an 8-man tournament to get the next heavyweight contender, and that Omega was in the first round. This was a double shot to Hangman. Not only has he been out there WINNING singles matches while Omega isn't even DOING anyway and he's in the first group of four, it also basically means, yes, he's done with the tag team. All hope is dead. Hangman walks away drunk and sad.
Kassidy/Jericho
As predicted Jericho wins. Against all hope, it seems like this is one and done. I think Isiah is a fine wrestler who interests me zero percent. Jericho was barely in this match, Isiah carried a lot of it but ultimately got the Judas Effect and RIP.
What was good was that Jericho picked a fight with Luther, who rules in the memeiest way possible, and it looks like we're getting a Jericho/Luther match which FUCKING RULES.
Miro & Sabian on the bachelor party
Miro and Sabian talk about the bachelor party, and they recruit for some reason disgraced former Donkey Kong record holder Billy Mitchell helping. Weird bit but okay.
Dash W/ Best Friends & FTR
OC's match is next, Dasha is asking Best Friends some questions when FTR saunters up once more telling them they're midcard trash. BF's fake a punch and FTR look like giant weenies flinching like crazy, then OC just says "Weenies" and walks off into his match with 10.
Orange Cassidy/10
I continue to believe OC and the Dark Order is best possible pairing. Get BF's involved as a trio and this is money, baby.
I want to say this is a standard "OC Is Trying" match. He didn't do a lot of bits, just got down to business, did the swinging DDT, killed John Silver (who did the best friends hug with Alex and I think 5), then got him with the Orange Punch and followed up with this Beach Break move to finish the fight. I love this and hope it continues. Probably won't next week because of the dog collar match though.
MJF gives some jackets away
MJF and WARDDOG go into the Inner Circle dressing room to congratulate Jericho on his victory tonight (IE: continue his push to try and get into IC). He ODDLY ENOUGH doesn't have a jacket for Sammy. You can immediately see where this is going, or at least where they want us to think it's going. MJF is gonna slowly try to dog Sammy out of the IC and take his place. Honestly this bullshittery from MJF could be what finally breaks Inner Circle apart. We can hope. But MJF and Jericho do a repeat of their "Do you want me to join?" "ARE YOU ASKING TO JOIN?" bit from last year, then MJF says hey we'll come back to this. Sammy calls him a loser as he leaves but Jericho, pinky out with the champagne glass says "...no, maybe... he's not".
Baker/Red Velvet
Brit is back tonight, FINALLY, after getting injured right before, iirc, Double or Nothing. She's fighting Red Velvet who has been showing up a lot again lately. I hope that means she's getting signed along with Kilynn, I think they're both terrific. Better than Diamante and Ivelisse anyway, holy moly.
Brit, who was never really the most technically gifted wrestler before her injury (though she was on her way for sure), looks AMAZING out here tonight! Honestly this was one of her best matches on AEW ever! Shida beat Velvet in about 4 seconds flat a few months ago, so it's at least promising for Red Velvets' sake that she's out here like 10 minutes tonight.
Regardless, Brit is a total asshole to Velvet, winking into the camera, giving these awful smiles she does, and then just to remind us she's the worst, she beats Velvet with a curb stomp, gets the pin, THEN goes for her mandible claw attack (with glove) just to rub it in.
Great match. Truly excellent to see Brit Baker improving SOOO much in the ring. She's really great compared to when I started watching last year. The whole womens' division is much better, but her in particular.
Moxley/Butcher
To my ABSOLUTE delight-- well-- hang on, so Pentagon was kind of hinting he would be Moxleys challenger tonight, which I was stoked for, and then they pull a rope a dope on us with Butcher coming out for a cheap shot start to the match. I love Butcher, his whole gimmick just SPEAKS to me. So this is, okay-- I know, but to me this was like a better version of the Mox/Kingston fight from last week. Now, to be totally fair to Eddie, and I do think you have to be fair, Kingston had like 2 hours to prep for that fight. Archer's diagnosis and everything happened that fast. So I'm not dissing Eddie. At all. But this was just-- two giant dudes wailing on each other but also able to do some more flying stuff. Butcher worked Mox's leg to shreds, and Mox died on it tons. He couldn't get his Paradigm Shift nor a few other moves because he had no ground to stand on.
Butcher nearly had him a few times, REALLY put Mox through it. Eventually, Moxley got him in that choke he killed Brodie with (and Kingston too) and took him out via submission. I was really happy to see one of my favorites really get a chance to shine in a singles match. I loved it, it was good, gg.
Overall Grade: A-
Pros:
Cons: