Dynamite recap & reactions: Jack Perry punches Tony Khan

AEW Dynamite (Apr. 24, 2024) emanated from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, FL. The show featured Jack Perry and the Elite beating up Tony Khan, Jon Moxley defending NJPW gold, Will Ospreay earning a title shot, and more on the fallout to Dynasty.

Catch up on all the details with the excellent play-by-play from Claire Elizabeth.

Tony Khan attacked by Jack Perry & The Elite!

Dynamite had a chaotic conclusion with Jack Perry and the Elite taking Tony Khan for a ride on the pain train. It was glorious.

The show opened with the Elite arriving to the venue followed by Jack Perry in a separate vehicle. Security tried to block Perry’s passage, but the EVPs vouched for him.

Later, the foursome was seen entering Tony Khan’s office. Alex Marvez snooped for scoops about the reinstatement of Perry, and we learned that Khan agreed to meet the Scapegoat in the ring face to face.

Perry entered the ring to call out Khan for their meeting. Perry stated that the only thing he ever wanted is what’s best for AEW. The Scapegoat requested that Khan shake his hand for reinstatement. Khan accepted the gesture, and they sealed it with a tender hug. Perry peaked over Khan’s shoulder to smile at the camera. Boom! Perry sucker punched Khan in the gut. Man down!

The Elite rushed to the ring to confront Perry. The Young Bucks checked on Khan lifting his arms into an EVP Trigger position. The crowd could sense what was coming, but the Bucks backed down. That was until Okada gave his stamp of approval on these dirty deeds. The Bucks planted Khan with a Meltzer Driver.

Once the Elite exited, the locker room emptied with referees, officials, babyface wrestlers, and Papa Khan checking on Tony.

AEW posted the full scene.

Oh, shit. That was great. This is the kind of angle to spark immediate interest in the product. It was cheesy in a good way, like many pro wrestling angles tend to be. Perry and the Elite milked the drama to have viewers in the palm of their hands. Khan receives a lot of criticism about his presence on screen, however, he nailed it here. No talking. Just facial expressions and a ticket to beatdown city. It worked in a sense of the ridiculous nature of this sport with over-the-top storytelling.

So many questions need answering, and that produces a feeling of must-see TV for next week (or Collision if they advertise a follow-up). Starting with the most important one. Why, Jungle Boy, why? Because he’s a man, damn it. Seriously though, the answer probably revolves around doing what’s best for AEW. The idea can be manipulated into Perry believing that Khan is driving the company into the ground. They might even blend common criticisms into the talking points for Perry to justify his actions. That can be a hook for haters to take the bite and tune in to AEW. The angle is fresh out of the oven, so it is an open book to write. AEW needed a jolt of excitement beyond great matches, and this story has potential to fill that hole.

Let’s jam through the rest of Dynamite.

Chuck Taylor chose a side. Trent Beretta tossed Orange Cassidy through the entrance tunnel and beat him down on way to the ring. He accused OC of being a narcissist. Trent called for Chuck to make his choice. Trent wanted Chuck to give the people what they want and held out his arms for a hug. Chuck punched Trent in the kisser. He always thought Trent was a piece of crap. Chuck can’t be cleared to wrestle, so he wants to fight Trent in the parking lot. The Parking Lot Fight was booked for Rampage.

Best Friends explode! The moment was a hoot from Trent opening his arms wide for an embrace to Chuck teasing a hug to punching Trent in the jaw with the microphone. It started with intrigue and closed with a bang. This is the kind of story needed to keep the mid-card players interesting.

Swerve Strickland defeated Kyle Fletcher. Title eliminator match. The world champ controlled the flow for much of the contest. Fletcher rattled off some nifty moves, but there was never any doubt that Swerve would win. Swerve closed with a flying stomp in the corner and the House Call kick for victory.

AEW had a lot positive movement on this episode, however, they dropped the ball big time on Swerve. They have a new world champ to be the face of the franchise, and they didn’t capitalize on that interest at all. No promo. No angle for his next contender. (AEW did have a random graphic saying we’ll find out his PPV opponent next week.) It was just a solid but basic match. AEW didn’t provide any reason to care about the world champ on this evening. And frankly, that is unacceptable.

Three items to keep an eye on. Swerve tweaked his ankle landing a flying stomp on the apron. I’m not sure if that was legit or story, because Fletcher took advantage for an ankle lock. In either case, a tender ankle could be used as a weak point in Swerve’s next match.

Don Callis was on commentary and called out a signal for Fletcher. The Aussie looked under the ring and declined the coaching advice, to which Callis explained that he wanted Fletcher to use a table. This could be a sign of cracks in the Callis Family.

Commentary also mentioned that Excalibur had a scoop that Callis was recruiting to expand his family. The plot thickens.

Mina Shirakawa defeated Anna Jay. Mariah May was ringside to support her Stardom mentor. Jay countered a suplex into the Queen Slayer choke. Shirakawa escaped to trap Jay in a snazzy roll-up.

Afterward, Mariah brought out the champagne to celebrate. Jay attacked May, then Toni Storm arrived for the save. Serena Deeb stepped out on stage to call her shot next at the AEW Women’s World Championship.

This was an entertaining segment with all the moving parts creating different story aspects. The match itself was enjoyable with Shirakawa showing spunky personality and Jay going full FABA. It would appear that Storm’s path is set for the next few PPVs. Deeb will bring it in the ring with technical expertise, likely for Double or Nothing. Forbidden Door is around the corner after that, and it would make sense for Shirakawa to challenge Storm with May in the middle of her two mentors. I want to see all these directions play out.

TBS Championship celebration. Stokely Hathaway hosted a party for Willow Nightingale. Caprice Coleman rapped a tune, and Kris Statlander recited a poem. Willow was interrupted by Mercedes Moné, who will be the challenger at Double or Nothing. They tried to clear the air about who attacked when the lights went out. No progress on that. The topic turned to Mercedes passive-aggressively venting her frustration onto Willow for the injury last year. Willow denied intentionally hurting her. At the PPV, there will be no excuses. When Mercedes turned her back, Statlander grabbed the CEO’s arm. Mercedes assumed it was Willow and slapped the taste out of her mouth.

The promo session started fun with Willow appreciative of Stokely turning from fungus to family, then the seriousness kicked in with the CEO. They continued to hype the fight with story issues. In terms of babyface standing, I’m on team Willow for that segment. Mercedes came off bitter. The mix-up with Statlander was odd. It leads to questioning the intended purpose, and the direction points to perhaps Statlander being behind the mystery attack on Mercedes. I don’t buy that theory just yet, but the seeds are there to ponder.

Will Ospreay won the Casino Gauntlet. AEW trotted out a new match concept. It was a combination between a gauntlet and a Royal Rumble. This was first fall to a finish. No eliminations. The action started with two wrestlers, then another joined the fun every few minutes. The prize was a shot at the AEW International Championship at Double of Nothing. The field included Jay White, Dante Martin, Pentagon, Kyle O’Reilly, Ospreay, Lance Archer, Komander, and Jay Lethal.

Ospreay surged strong at the end. When he set up a Tiger Driver ‘91 on O’Reilly, he stalled with hesitation due to the potential for serious injury (as he did to Bryan Danielson with that move).

O’Reilly took advantage for an armbar. Komander hit a rope-walking shooting star press onto the pile, then Ospreay dropped the hammer with the Hidden Blade on the luchador to win. Afterward, Roderick Strong and the Undisputed Kingdom stared down Ospreay.

The Casino Gauntlet concept was pretty nifty. AEW needed to do a better job of introducing the match with a graphic for the rules. They just sprung it out there cold with commentary relaying the information. The match was interesting with interactions playing to past history. The pace was a sprint with action all around. I’d say Archer was the standout with a monster’s menace to pummel everyone. AEW did a smart thing to handle his domination when Komander hit a hurricanrana off the apron through tables. That was believable to dispose of Archer for the finish. Ospreay’s moral drama added zest to determining the winner. They crafted a cool exchange of moves in that moment for Ospreay earn victory. And this answers the question of how to keep Ospreay out of the world title picture with Swerve fresh as new champ.

Ospreay’s night on screen wasn’t over just yet. Callis was cranky about Ospreay’s lack of killer instinct with the Tiger Driver ‘91. Fletcher tried to calm the tension, so Callis sassed him.

Seeds are sprouting for something to blow with the Callis Family. It’s a good thing that Callis has an eye on new recruits, because Ospreay already beat each member in a match.

Chris Jericho’s Learning Tree. The new FTW champion changed the initials to mean For The World. Taz guffawed in embarrassment on commentary. Jericho played himself up to be the shepherd of the business teaching knowledge to the younger generation. He name-dropped Terry Funk as passing that responsibility to him. Jericho wanted to teach Hook to drop the dead weight, like Taz and Shibata. Hook wouldn’t listen to his advice to stay down, so his hand was forced to hit Hook with a baseball bat.

Big Bill Morrissey made a surprise appearance. The 7-footer requested the guidance of the Learning Tree. He referred to Jericho as the Socrates of pro wrestling. Jericho informed his potential pupil that he’ll think about it.

Jericho’s new character shift took a little time to develop, but I like this turn now. He’s a full-blown gasbag of ego under the guise of tutelage. That attitude should provide for entertainment. It seems like a new faction is forming, and Bill would be a strong start. He’s too good not to be on TV more frequently. One thing AEW needs to be careful about is Jericho rehashing his previous crews. They need to find a distinct flavor that sets them apart from the Inner Circle and the Jericho Appreciation Society.

Later, Shibata challenged Jericho to a match for the FTW Championship next week.

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship: Jon Moxley defeated Will Hobbs to retain the title. Moxley clarified not to mistake his confidence for arrogance. He is fully aware of the danger that Hobbs can unleash in the ring. There is no better way to feel alive that take on that type of challenge.

Powerhouse lived up to his name by clobbering Moxley in a brawl through the fans. The big man’s downfall came when jamming his knee into the corner as Mox moved out of the way. Moxley capitalized to blitz with aggression. He landed furious punches, a Paradigm Shift, and a chokehold to earn the submission victory. Afterward, Konosuke Takeshita stepped out on stage with an eye for NJPW gold.

The finish to this match felt abrupt. Hobbs was steamrolling, then he got destroyed after the knee injury. The flow made me question if the injury was real or if AEW told them to finish quick to save time for the final segment of the show. In story terms, it showed how dangerous Moxley can be. He spoke about how one mistake can cause everything to crash down, and that’s what happened to Hobbs in this match.

Notes: Kenny Omega returns next week on Dynamite.

Deonna Purrazzo interrupted Thunder Rosa. Bickering turned to shoving, and security intervened.

Stud of the Show: Jack Perry

Sucker punching a man who weighs 100 pounds soaking wet isn’t a stud move. Perry gets stud status for his actions causing him to be the center of conversation when reflecting on this episode.

Match of the Night: Casino Gauntlet

Rapid-fire pace with a cool finish.

Grade: A-

Thumbs up for maximum fun. This was a great episode building from Dynasty into the next chapter of stories for Double or Nothing. Outside of dropping the ball on Swerve this week, everything else was focused with clear direction to produce hot stories. For anyone who laments the lack of storytelling in AEW, this episode seems like a wise time to jump in and see how the product progresses over the coming weeks.

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