At the start of the year Dynamite was pulling in approximately 800,000 for the most part. In the last four months though the show has dropped about 200,000 viewers. You would think that would be a wake-up call to AEW that they need to shake things up. They need to switch gears and alter their booking. Despite AEWs broadcast deal with Time-Warner Discovery ending this month the promotion continues to rocket along the same path. Will things turn a corner this week? Let’s find out together.
The show opens with footage of MJF turning heel again and is blaming the fans again for EVERYTHING.
To me, MJF is reaching Big Show levels of multiple personality disorder here.
Out comes one of the few bright lights in AEW: Will Ospreay, the best wrestler in the world at present.
Ospreay isn’t surprised by MJF turning on a popcorn vendor and hospitalizing him last week. He calls MJF “insecure”. Ospreay can tell MJF doesn’t really like him. It is because Tony Khan would rather spend money on talent who will move the needle, he says. Ospreay claims to have more talent in his left nut than MJF has in his entire body and he represents what AEW should be. He calls MJF a “selfish little prick”. Ospreay explains that ever since he arrived in AEW he has been cleaning up MJF’s messes. Ospreay calls MJF out. Ospreay drops the microphone and belt. He is ready to fight.
MJF’s music plays but he doesn’t show up live. Instead he appears on the big screen sipping on a glass of wine. The crowd doesn’t deserve his presence it seems. “You are a joke. You are a flavor of the month…You are their dancing, toy monkey,” he says. MJF doesn’t wrestle for the people’s amusement. He challenges Ospreay for his International Championship.
MJF blubbers something lame like Ospreay won’t be “wrestling for stars” but will be “seeing stars” when he punches him in the face next week. Ooookay.
So, basically MJF and Ospreay are calling each other phonies and frauds. Two sides of the same coin?
“Max, I will see you next week you little bitch,” says Ospreay.
Bryan Danielson vs. Hangman Page – Men’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament Final
We all know Danielson is going to win. Jeff Jarrett is the special enforcer.
Hangman comes out chewing gum and looking like he has held in a Number Two for a week. Hangman shoves Danielson off over and over. Danielson looks confused. Danielson misses a kick. Hangman lay in some punches and chops. Danielson dives into Hangman sending him into the ringside barricade. Danielson hurts his own neck…again.
How many bloody times are they going to do the injury angle with Danielson? I mean, come on.
Danielson is ran off the apron into the steel post while Hangman glares at the camera like he really needs to go Number Two. The show goes picture-in-picture as we see Danielson is busted open. Hangman slams Danielson’s head into the ring stairs about 340 times. Danielson moans and groans…HOLDING HIS NECK. Ugh!
Hangman punches Danielson over and over and over and over. Apparently with all that time off Hangman forgot how to wrestle. Danielson kicks back. Hangman switches to kicking Danielson over and over and over and over after a swinging sleeper hold. More chops and punches by Hangman. That is followed by more chops and punches then more chops and punches and then more chops and punches.
Danielson slaps a LeBell Lock on Hangman but Page escapes. Danielson gives Hangman a Spider German Suplex off the second rope. Danielson goes SPLAT! when he misses his diving head butt. Hangman puts Danielson in a crossface. Danielson reaches the ropes.
There is a commercial for some granola bar called Kind. It appears to me that they gathered the ingredients by fighting off squirrels while they raided the forest floor. I would rather eat gravel which is probably what that crap tastes like.
Hangman smashes Danielson’s head into the steel turnbuckle. A Tombstone Piledriver gets Hangman a two count. Jarrett has wandered near ringside. Danielson slams Page onto the ring apron. Danielson springboards off the top rope onto Page.
Danielson gets up…holding his NECK. The officials check on Danielson. Page pushes them away. Hangman pulls off the officials and pie-faces Jeff Jarrett. Danielson stumbles around like he is dizzy.
I don’t know about you but I am tired of Danielson pulling this injury nonsense all the time. Just stop. It is a cheap plot, a cheap angle considering his real-life issues and he does this far too much now.
Danielson hits the Busaiku Knee but cannot pin Page. He is out of it. Danielson and Page battle on their knees and to their feet. Page moves and Danielson hits the official with a Busaiku Knee. The official breaks like glass. Page starts whipping and choking Danielson with his belt. Jarrett enters the ring. He pleads with Page to stop. Page shoves him to the mat. Jarrett stands up, takes off his shirt and he is wearing a referee’s shirt underneath. Jarrett takes over officiating the match. Page hits a Dead Eye. Danielson kicks out.
One Buckshot Lariat to the back of Danielson’s head. Danielson rides a second one almost pinning Page. Hangman slaps another crossface on Danielson. Danielson fades away. Jarrett raises Danielson’s arm but it doesn’t fall. Danielson rolls backwards in the crossface pinning Page. Page storms out of the ring. Bryan Danielson will wrestle for the AEW World Championship at All In. Dr. Hart and Jeff Jarrett award Danielson the belt and trophy.
Winner:…and Men’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament Winner: Bryan Danielson.
Swerve Strickland comes down to the ring with the AEW World Championship. Too bad that he didn’t lead-off the show since he is THE AEW World Champion and all. Swerve calls himself the best in the world since he beat Ospreay. He says it will be an honor putting the belt up against him at All In. Swerve announces he will be joining the Blood and Guts match on Team AEW. He will do what Danielson cannot do and that is lead Team AEW to victory and beat Will Ospreay. Swerve challenges Okada to a match calling him a “bitch”. I guess that is the running gag with Okada now? Swerve says Danielson’s match at All In will be his “final countdown”. Not a really strong, impressive or impactful promo.
It is a shame that Okada went from being one of the greatest wrestlers in the world to a stooge on AEW television.
Marie Osmond is hocking some new joint cream or something. I am dating myself here but I remember her on the Donny and Marie Show growing up. I don’t remember her face looking like freaking Silly Putty though.
Here they are BADLY spoofing Star Wars.
https://youtu.be/t-aDHbBWfMQ
A rap video featuring The Acclaimed ripping on The Elite airs. It is rap so my ears automatically shut off.
Samoa Joe vs. Chris Jericho – Canadian Stampede Street Fight
I think I want to move to Calgary just so I can wear a cowboy hat without looking stupid. Naw, I would probably still look stupid.
Jericho is STILL doing this Learning Tree nonsense? Is he really that self-unaware? Someone holds up a sign asking Jericho to retire. If he is going to c0ntinue this embarrassing crap he should.
Joe swipes Jericho’s cowboy hat and mangles it. Joe punches, head butts Jericho in the head. Jericho fights back with chop. Joe leaps over the ropes onto Bryan Keith. He then throws him over the barricade. Jericho flubs a flying punch, throws Joe into the barricade and hits him with steel chair. Jericho pulls a black bag from under the ring and dumps out some horse shoes. Joe slams Jericho on the horse shoes and splatters him with a senton for a two count. Jericho kicks Joe in the “lower abdomen”. Joe is put in the Walls of Jericho. He escapes. Jericho dives off the apron. Joe walks away. Jericho hits the steel steps.
They battle into the crowd and the backstage area. Jericho throws hot coffee into Joe’s face. Joe dodges the Judas Effect. Joe puts Jericho in the Coquina Clutch. Big Bill attacks from behind hitting Joe with a steel chair in the back. Jericho wraps a belt around his fist punching Joe in the head with it. Bill chokeslams Joe onto a pallet loaded onto a fork lift. Jericho operates the forklift driving it right through a plaster wall. Joe is shown KO’ed on the floor laying in debris. The medical officials call the match.
Winner: Chris Jericho
After a commercial break Joe is loaded onto a stretcher and into an ambulance. Jericho and his goons are shown waving goodbye.
Claudio Castagnoli vs. Tomohiro Ishii vs. Kyle Fletcher vs. Pac – Winner gets an International Championship Match
A PSA to Excalibur: His name is NOT pronounced “Ishee-ee”. His name is simply “Ee-shee”, if you bothered to watch NJPW you would know that.
Stop pronouncing the man’s name wrong, you clown.
https://youtu.be/w7Z3LAHZs3k
Claudio gets a big pop when he puts Kyle in the Sharpshooter. Pac drops a flying elbow on Kyle. Pac puts Kyle into the Brutalizer. Ishii screws up a sliding clothesline into Pac. Claudio hits the Neutralizer on Kyle. Pac pulls him off. They start brawling. Pac hits his Red Arrow and makes Kyle submit to the Brutalizer. Pac: It is All In season and I won’t be denied my Wembley moment.
Winner: Pac
Hangman Page brushes past a whiny Renee Paquette who acts like a spoiled brat because Page won’t give her an interview. Page pounds on The Elite’s dressing room door. Renee scurries off. Okada answers the door and holds Page off until The Young Bucks emerge. They ask Page if they can do anything for him? He says he will do “it”. We assume “it” is join their Blood and Guts team.
Mercedes Mone stripper dances to the ring where she puts her belt on bar table. Nobody seems too excited to hear from her. There is security around the ring. She claims to be the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be. That pisses off the crowd. She warns Britt Baker not to take her on at All In. Mone raises a glass to herself. Baker’s music hits. Security tries to stop her. Baker punches them out. Come on. Really? She floors the tanks that are security? Mone flees the ring rather than tangle with Baker.
Brandon Cutler is attacked by Darby Allin backstage. Allin sends Jack Perry a warning. Cutler still has a job in AEW? Next you will tell me AEW signed the amazing Kamille but aren’t using her.
Mariah May vs. Willow Nightingale – Women’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament Final
Shouldn’t Danielson and Page been the main event? Sorry, I love Willow. Her future is bright. I followed May in Stardom. Both are still rough around the edges, need a lot more training and coaching. They shouldn’t be main-eventing anything at this point in their careers. They are still slow and often not very fluid. This match proves that in great detail.
May sends Willow into the ropes, more like Willow throws herself into the ropes. A drop kick to the spine gets May a two count. Willow and May change chops. Willow picks up May spins her around and slams her for a two count. Willow lands on awkward cannonball on May off the apron.
We go to commercial. The O’Reilly Auto Parts ad is more interesting than the match. I wish we didn’t have to go back to it.
Willow spinebuster, slams May for the zillionth time. Willow goes for the Sharpshooter. May fights out of it. May suplexes Willow and hits her with a running upper cut in a corner. May hurricanas Willow out of a corner.
May hits Willow with a head butt and they both fall to the mat. Someone in a Sting sweat shirt distracts Willow. It is Stokely Hathaway. As Storm distracts the official Kris Statlander clobbers Willow. Willow kicks out of May’s running knee strike. May reverses a fireman’s carry to roll up Willow. Willow congratulates May and so does Toni Storm. May will face Storm for the AEW Women’s World Championship at All in.
Storm excitedly skips up the rampway with May to retrieve the belt and trophy. Where is Dr. Hart one wonders?
Out of nowhere, May clobbers Storm and Luther with the Owen belt. She knocks Luther off the rampway. Storm is busted open. May whacks Storm in the head with her own shoe repeatedly.
May even hits Aubrey Edwards knocking her on her ass. Now, THAT was beautiful and worth tuning in for.
Winner: Women’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament Winner, Mariah May.
RELATED LINK
https://slamwrestling.net/index.php/2024/07/11/second-dynamite-in-calgary-sees-a-drop-in-attendance-not-action/
