-AEW didn’t announce that a damn war was going to start the Maximum Carnage edition of Dynamite this week, but that’s exactly what we got. Darby Allin vs. PAC was total madness. Darby Allin knows who he is. He can’t have a bad match because he’s so locked in to the character. Unfortunately for him, his character is designed to get destroyed every single time he gets in the ring. He took some nasty bumps in the match, including a back bump on the rigid edge of the steel steps. Wild stuff, but it would be a lie to say it didn’t create investment in the match and sympathy for Allin. Yes, he’s got to find a different way to grab that investment from fans. Maybe not all the time, but most of the time. If he doesn’t, his career is going to be much shorter than it should be.
-Glad to see Adam Page get a pretty easy win over Bryan Keith. Swerve Strickland fighting off the interference was an easy way to showcase their continued partnership.
Focused challengers
-So, Page, Strickland, and Kenny Omega are all pointing themselves at the AEW World Championship. Is Tony Khan reading this each week? This is the smart way to book. Put the most important title in the sights of all the top stars and have them strive for it. Not everyone will get to the title in a straight line, but by positioning the stories with that at the core, it easily directs where you’re going with creative.
-Omega will be interesting to follow. He clearly set up a road to the world title storyline by saying that he needs to earn a shot by winning matches. In that one sentence, Omega outlined what the first four months of the year will look like for him in 2026.
From The Takedown on SI
-What did you make of Swerve Strickland being peeved at Adam Page showing respect to Omega? Something to keep an eye on …
-Squash city! Brody King got a squash match on the last episode of Collision and on this week’s Dynamite. Why the hell not? A simple squash keeps a monster like King on the front burner and relevant.
Heel vs. heel with these heels?
-What the hell is going on with the men’s tag team division in AEW? Ok, so the fatal four-way number one contender match was what it was. It was an action-packed match that we’ve seen before. Young Bucks style in every way. As for the division, so two heel teams are now colliding over the belts? What sense does this make? FTR spent the better part of 2025 becoming a viable heel team. Davis and Doyle are a new team that’s a part of The Don Callis Family — the biggest heel faction in AEW. By pairing them up for a feud, you automatically make both less likely to generate heat. Heel vs. heel? With these teams? Now??? What are we doing? There are plenty of mid-card babyface tag teams on the roster to fill this spot. Straightforward booking is necessary.
-Ok, let’s talk about that Skyflight promo. That thing was tremendously over-produced. Goodness. There were times in the promo where Zayda Steel had arm motions that went along with what Scorpio Sky and others were saying. If that happens, you’re too reliant on the script. This was a tough watch for that reason and it didn’t paint anyone involved in a great light.
-Thekla pinned Kris Statlander in the Cosmic Babes vs. Triangle of Madness Trios Match. Guess what’s coming …
-The Rascalz make perfect sense for AEW. Fits like a glove. All four guys in that group are action-based workers that will mesh with the likes of Mike Bailey, Kevin Knight, Kyle Fletcher, and others. Stylistically, the group is made for this company.
Thank you, MJF
-MJF and Bandido delivered a very strong main event. It’s strength leaned right on the foundation that they set last week with that wonderful promo segment. There was no reason to think Bandido was actually going to win this match, but throughout it, both guys made you believe he could. The near falls were well-timed, the action made sense, and Bandido got to shine as a fighting babyface. As for MJF, how great was the post-match beatdown of Bandido? Juuuuuuuust in case he didn’t get enough heat in the match, that angle assured that he would by the time things were done. Great stuff.
What did you think of this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite? Let us know in the comments!
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