AEW Dynamite recap & reactions (Oct. 22, 2025): Musty

Coming out of the WrestleDream PPV, AEW had the chance to offer fresh directions on Dynamite (Oct. 22, 2025) from Boeing Center at Tech Port in San Antonio, TX. Instead, AEW served musty feuds past their expiration date. Darby Allin is still fighting the Death Riders, The Demand are still trifling with the Hurt Syndicate, Kyle Fletcher is still trashing Mark Briscoe, Kazuchika Okada is still taunting Konosuke Takeshita, and the list goes on. There are a couple of interesting developments, such as the feud between Kris Statlander and Mercedes Moné with a classic cake gag. It’s more about the whole package together getting stale.

The opening bout and the main event are examples of this mustiness. The small picture was hot, then the big picture lacked zest.

AEW World Trios Championship

Dynamite opened with the Opps defending the trios titles against the Hurt Syndicate. That battle had the big-fight feel of ass-kickers colliding. The Opps and the Hurt Syndicate delivered with everyone looking like a badass. Samoa Joe and MVP had the presence to set the tone. Will Hobbs and Bobby Lashley were sizzling meat with power moves aplenty. Katsuyori Shibata and Shelton Benjamin added style. The match was hot.

The finish was not. MVP set up Joe for the Playmaker. That’s when Ricochet and GOA demanded MVP’s attention. The distraction from Ric set up the Coquina Clutch from Joe to retain the titles. Afterward, the Hurt Syndicate chased the Demand for payback.

That trifling from the Demand was a wet blanket. As much as I’ve enjoyed the feud with the Hurt Syndicate, I don’t need another chapter right now. If the idea is to protect the Hurt Syndicate in defeat to the Opps, well, don’t book this match right now. AEW rushed into the #1 contendership and the title bout when they didn’t have to do either.

Moving on to the beef between Joe and Hangman Page. After the heel turn from the Opps at WrestleDream, the cowboy was ornery to ruin Joe’s life.

Joe had a response on Dynamite. Why do what he did? Because Joe exists to hunt champions. He exists to show ‘the man’ isn’t that man. Joe is going to slap Hangman and make him his bitch.

Damn. Those are fighting words. Leave it to Joe to sell the fight on the mic. After the heel turn at WrestleDream, it was clear this feud wasn’t over. The issue is I don’t know what more they have to explore here beyond Hangman winning again in a more ferocious manner. Maybe Joe shocks the world and takes the world title for the second time. In that case, running back the rematch would be worth it.

AEW Unified Championship

Kazuchika Okada put the unified title on the line against Bandido in the main event. This was fancy matchmaking, and the action was even fancier. Bandido was still affected by his injured shoulder, but he pushed through. The match revolved around trying to hit finishers. Bandido was too quick for the Rainmaker at times, and Okada was too savvy for the 21 Plex. That didn’t stop the persistence, and it led to exciting exchanges.

Bandido stunned Okada with a slick spinning backfist. That put into motion the X Knee and 21 Plex. Bandido was slow to cover, and he didn’t wrap tight. Okada kicked out.

At one point, Bandido got the better of Okada with his own move. Rainmaker!

In the end, Bandido had momentum again for the X Knee. As Bandido went for the 21 Plex, Okada countered to catch him cold with the Rainmaker lariat to win.

Hot match for TV. Okada versus Bandido was an example of the catchphrase for where the best wrestle.

The show closed with another tease of tension between Okada and Konosuke Takeshita.

This scene doesn’t cut it for me. AEW has been pulling our chain too long on this potential blockbuster match. My patience is growing thin on waiting for them to finally book this contest. I would’ve liked to see some physicality from Takeshita here, especially considering Okada nailed him without remorse at WrestleDream.

Darby Allin & Jon Moxley

The biggest story heading into WrestleDream was the I Quit match between Darby Allin and Jon Moxley. Allin made Moxley quit with a little help from Sting. I was curious how both men would react for Dynamite.

Allin heard the criticism of him being too dangerous to be the face of AEW. He proved that notion wrong by going places other won’t. Allin showed that he is willing to die for AEW. He’s no dummy. Allin knows the Death Riders aren’t going away just because he made Moxley quit. As long as the Death Riders are breathing, he won’t be far behind.

The first point was an interesting take to begin pushing him back as the face of AEW. In theory, he earned that after suffering so much punishment from Moxley without quitting. That can get the future rolling back on track for a world championship run one day. The back half led to Allin bringing his baseball bat to help the Conglomeration against the Death Riders.

After a coffin match and an I Quit match, what more is there to do. I’ve had enough of Allin against the Death Riders. I’d like to see both move on to fresh feuds. It’s hard to transition, because Allin boxed himself in by claiming he will take everything from Moxley. At what point is it enough.

That’s one half of the equation. The other half has interesting potential.

AEW explored the character development of Moxley in the aftermath of quitting. I’m still not quite sure why exactly Moxley quit against Darby, however, his ego is taking a hit. AEW aired a backstage promo of Moxley giving himself a pep talk in the mirror.

Moxley went right back to work for a match against Kyle O’Reilly. It was a feisty chess match of technical wrestling. O’Reilly gained the upper hand as the fight wore on. Commentary painted a picture of Moxley looking shaken and getting a little flustered to force little mistakes, like submission positioning too close to the ropes. O’Reilly shocked Moxley by escaping the Paradigm Shift to counter for an ankle lock. We could see Moxley debating a tap out. Instead of quitting again, he clocked the referee. The win was given to O’Reilly, however, Moxley’s ego can say he didn’t quit.

The destruction of Moxley’s psyche can become a compelling angle for his development. AEW has been shown capable of telling complex stories, such as Hangman Page’s redemption. I’m looking forward to seeing how this unfolds.

Kris Statlander & Mercedes Moné

One bright spot of the storytelling for this episode was developing this feud for the AEW Women’s World Championship.

Kris Statlander doesn’t need a celebration. She is looking forward to taking the women’s world title to heights never seen. Statlander accepts the challenge from Mercedes Moné for Full Gear. Simple enough to start.

Mercedes was in the house in honor of her 12 belts. Mini Moné interrupted the celebration with plenty of sass. Even Renee Paquette did the CEO dance with the puppet.

Mercedes was tired of the disrespect, so she shoved the puppet’s face into the cake. That alone was funny. It got even better when Statlander emerged from the backside to slam Mercedes into the cake.

Some gags stand the test of time. Cake to the face is one of those gags. It was a nice touch to make it feel like Harley was in trouble only to have Statlander as the surprise punisher. This should be a fun feud in the weeks leading to Full Gear.

Mercedes’ night wasn’t over. She wiped cake out of her nose to accept the invitation from Athena to be partners in the tag title tournament. Bring on Minion training.

AEW revealed the tournament bracket:

• Jamie Hayter & Queen Aminata vs. Julia Hart & Skye Blue
• Willow Nightingale & Harley Cameron vs. Mercedes Moné & Athena
• Riho & Alex Windsor vs. Toni Storm & Mina Shirakawa
• Megan Bayne & Penelope Ford vs. Tay Melo & Anna Jay

While there was lots of stale stories for the men, the women’s division is looking fresh with possibility.

Let’s jam through the rest of AEW Dynamite. Catch up on all the details with excellent play-by-play from Claire Elizabeth.

Jamie Hayter & Queen Aminata defeated Megan Bayne & Penelope Ford, Julia Hart & Skye Blue, and Willow Nightingale & Harley Cameron. Four-way tag team action. The winner picks their first round opponent for the AEW Women’s World Tag Team Championship tournament. When the dust cleared. Hayter and Aminata hit the headbutt Hayterade combo on Ford to win. Hayter chose the Sisters of Sin.

Fun chaos. The finish cleared out well with Bayne looking powerful then Willow pouncing her out of the ring. I like the showcase on Hayter and Aminata to close with that new combo as a surprise.

Orange Cassidy, Mark Briscoe, & Roderick Strong defeated Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta, & Daniel Garcia. Briscoe executed the Jay Driller on Yuta to seal the deal. Typical rowdy action that is AEW’s brand of wrestling. This was where Allin helped in the aftermath. It makes me wonder if Blood & Guts is in the works, or maybe that’s just Allin’s way of being an avenger to anyone in need of help from the Death Riders.

Notes: Jurassic Express want to reclaim their reputation. They want to take the AEW tag titles.

The Young Bucks were desperate for another money match. They were willing to have anyone as partners to fight anyone as opponents. Tony Khan threw them a bone for a $400,000 prize. It will be the Bucks & FTR against Jurassic Express & JetSpeed. I still want to know how Luchasaurus spent his WrestleDream money.

Kyle Fletcher proved himself better than Mark Briscoe, and that series is over. Fletcher believes that he can now beat Briscoe every time. Dat Boy wasn’t lying down from the title chase. He requested one more shot at the TBS Championship. Access denied, per Don Callis.

Mina Shirakawa named her tag team with Toni Storm as the Timeless Love Bombs. Thekla strolled in with trash talk, so Mina was game for a match on Collision.

Stud of the Show: Samoa Joe

Joe delivered one of Charles Barkley’s funniest bits about those big ol’ women in San Antonio.

Match of the Night: Okada vs. Bandido

The tale of Rainmaker versus 21 Plex grabbed my attention.

Grade: B

Entertaining show in the small picture. The big picture is feeling redundant so far on this cycle.

Share your thoughts about Dynamite. How do you rate it? What were your favorite moments from the show? Who impressed you the most?