Dynamite recap & reactions: The Dragon awakes

AEW Dynamite (Aug. 21, 2024) emanated from Utilita Arena on Cardiff, Wales. The show featured Bryan Danielson showing his fighting spirit, Okada taken to a time-limit draw for the continental title, Britt Baker serving payback to Kamille in a contract signing with Mercedes Moné, and more on the go-home to All In.

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

The Dragon Awakes

Bryan Danielson challenges Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Championship in career versus title at All In on August 25. Dynamite hyped the final showdown on the final countdown before what may be Danielson’s final match. The main event segment delivered fireworks that awakened the American F’ing Dragon.

Swerve was out first with provocation from Nigel McGuinness to threaten Danielson. Swerve is going to prove why he is the most dangerous man in AEW by dissecting brittle Bryan menacingly and scientifically. He is going to hurt Danielson so bad that there won’t be a question about retirement. And if Danielson ever gets the itch to return, Swerve will be there to make sure it doesn’t happen. No bingo hall independents, no wearing a mask in CMLL. And if Danielson ever raises the question of a return with his wife, Swerve will be there too. The insinuation was another home invasion like Swerve did to Hangman Page’s family.

That’s when Danielson entered the scene. He ran into the ring without hesitation to deliver the Busaiku Knee. Swerve went tumbling to the outside as Danielson delivered a fiery promo. The message was simple. Danielson is the best f’ing wrestler in the world and has been for the last 20 years. Commentary pumped up the return of the American Dragon’s spirit. One question remains. Can Danielson beat Swerve to win the world title? The crowd answered emphatically, “Yes! Yes! Yes!”

This segment was a fantastic way to build emotion for the anticipation of All In. Danielson was so effective in charging up energy that I’m ready to run through a wall. The story of the American Dragon in slumber was alright heading up to this point, but they really aced the moment in the final showdown. I’m still curious how Swerve will recover as a babyface after his ruthless threats, but that’s a conversation for a different time. The primary focus is on All In to see Danielson go out on his shield win or lose. It’s going to be a badass fight that fans won’t want to miss.

Let’s jam through the rest of Dynamite.

Mercedes Moné & Britt Baker contract signing. Agreement for no physicality. Kamille was present to watch the CEO’s back. Both women quickly signed the TBS Championship match contract for All In while exchanging trash talk. Mercedes touted her own excellence for putting women’s wrestling on the map. Baker acknowledged the work Mercedes put in, but that person is no longer here. She accused Mercedes of caring more about money than legacy. Baker abided to no physicality with Mercedes, so she bopped Kamille on the head instead with the microphone. Kamille stumbled to sit on top of Mercedes, and Baker leaped off the table for a crossbody. The DMD stood tall holding the TBS title.

The crowd made this segment hot. They had dueling DMD and CEO chants, which quickly turned against Mercedes when insulting them as losers. The crowd reaction brought high energy. The talking points were routine. No new ground was broken in the feud. It was a simple trash talk session trying to blend lines of real history and current characters. Baker got a little payback on Kamille to close on a spark.

Chris Jericho defeated Tommy Billington. The Dynamite Kid had momentum after a tombstone piledriver. Billington climbed the corner with Bryan Keith creeping, so he flew for a crossbody down to the floor. Billington sidestepped Big Bill to crash into the barricade. The Learning Tree took some lumps, but the purpose was accomplished. Jericho had time to recover. Billington went up top again for a dive. Jericho intercepted his opponent midair for a Codebreaker to win.

Afterward, Jericho spoke braggadociously about serving a beatdown on Hook if he was there. Well, Hook was there. The cold-hearted handsome devil confronted Jericho face to face. Bill attacked from behind to chokeslam Hook.

Solid match to put over Billington as an exciting talent. The Dynamite Kid showed spunk to rally over Learning Tree interference, but he also showed a rookie mistake taking his eye off the target. Jericho used his veteran savvy to earn the win in a cool finish. I have to question Jericho squeaking out with a victory days before All In. I guess the idea is to make him look beatable for Hook? But then Hook made a stupid mistake with tunnel vision for Jericho. When All In comes, Hook will have to face the odds, and it doesn’t look like he learned his lesson yet.

AEW Women’s World Championship: Toni Storm defeated Saraya to retain the title. Harley Cameron was ringside to interfere. Saraya surged for a flipping powerbomb off the turnbuckles and a cradle DDT, but Storm grabbed the ropes to break the pinfall.

The champ rallied for a big slam. When Harley hopped onto the apron, Storm planted a kiss on the lips. Saraya charged and accidentally clobbered Harley. Storm kissed Saraya then finished with a piledriver. Afterward, Mariah May sneak attacked Storm with a shoe.

Storm wrestled with comedic flair, then she turned up the heat when it was time to win. Saraya had her UK moment for a big match. The Wales crowd seemed to respect her presence, but they were more behind Storm to win. The attack from Mariah felt like an afterthought just to remind viewers that they have a title match at All In. It left room to revisit this title feud on Collision, if they choose.

Will Ospreay pays a price to punch MJF. The AEW American Championship challengers met in the ring for a promo session. No physicality or else pay a fine. MJF and Ospreay argued about who is the better wrestler. Ospreay pointed to the feelings of the fans. MJF spoke about facts for his accolades in AEW. MJF cracked when Ospreay touched a nerve. MJF admitted that the fans loved him until Ospreray showed up, and he blames Ospreay for ruining that.

MJF composed himself to go low. In Ospreay’s family life, he acts as the father for his wife’s child from a previous relationship. MJF perved about having a conversation with Ospreay’s wife backstage. MJF has a feeling that her next child won’t be Ospreay’s either. The insinuation being that Maxwell will sex her up. Ospreay took a step back, asked Tony Schiavone to contact Tony Khan about the fine amount should he strike MJF, and the answer was $127,000. Boom! Ospreay landed a punch and was content to pay that fine. Security rushed in, and Ospreay wailed like a wild man. As they tried to restrain him, MJF landed a cheap shot with the Dynamite Diamond Ring. MJF was ready to spike the Tiger Driver ‘91 on a bloody Ospreay, but security made the save.

Once again, the crowd made this segment hot. The ovation for Ospreay was overwhelming. I’m glad AEW gave him a moment to soak it in before MJF interrupted with his arrival. The banter was alright. The talking points transitioned a little away from the USA angle to ‘get real’ with deeper character motivation. MJF was such a scumbag at the end that Ospreay’s punch felt right. The tease for the Tiger Driver ‘91 remains important, because almost everyone wants to see MJF get finished by that move as an exclamation to finish this story.

Speaking of the Tiger Driver ‘91, Bryan Danielson gave his encouragement to Ospreay to hit the move on MJF. Do it!

AEW Continental Championship: Kazuchika Okada (c) wrestled Claudio Castagnoli to a draw. Claudio was turning the tide with a giant swing.

The action hooked attention. Before you knew it, the timekeeper announced one minute remaining in the 20-minute time limit. Claudio picked up urgency for a pop-up uppercut. Okada rolled to the ropes for safety, so Claudio hammered a jumping stomp to the chest. Okada kicked out and crawled for the ropes again. Time expired for a draw.

The timing of this draw feels bunched together with recent draws in AEW and even one in TNA, but I like how this result was orchestrated. I don’t think AEW ever used a draw as a tactic for heel champions to slither away. It can be an effective tool. Okada and Claudio delivered hard-hitting intensity for a darn good match. Claudio received the rub of re-establishing his legitimacy as a star who often loses big matches. Okada garnered heel heat by hugging the ropes to waste time. It leaves the door open for more to explore down the line.

Afterward, the Elite were on deck next. The EVPs teased the crowd to offer five more minutes to Claudio, then they pulled it away. The Elite threatened to force Claudio to leave the ring. Darby Allin and FTR arrived on stage for the next match.

Darby Allin & FTR defeated Young Bucks & Jack Perry. Competitive duel with the babyfaces locking in triple sharpshooters down the stretch. The Elite escaped, grabbed their titles, and tried to leave. The heroes wouldn’t let them. Moves erupted all around for a chaotic frenzy. Perry was victim to the Shatter Machine. Matt Jackson was ripe for the picking for the Power Plex from FTR and a Coffin Drop from Allin for victory.

Exciting match for the sake of having an exciting match. Allin pinned Matthew, so there’s nothing to glean from the result for All In.

The Acclaimed chimed in afterward to stir the pot with FTR and the Bucks. Max Caster and Anthony Bowens haven’t been beaten by either team, and that won’t change when they win the tag titles at All In.

Notes: Mark Briscoe’s word of the day was proliferation. I think that’s what he said. The Conglomeration challenged the Kingdom for Collision. Briscoe was wild in this one. Also, Kyle O’Reilly spoke with an English accent.

Hangman Page is in the Casino Gauntlet at All In to win a title shot and presumably fight Swerve Strickland. Hangman wants revenge so bad that he will run over anyone in his way. Evil Uno moseyed through the scene. When Hangman found out that Uno is in the gauntlet too, he bashed the masked man with a chair. Hangman added insult to injury by rolling his luggage over Uno’s crumpled body.

Stud of the Show: Bryan Danielson

One of the best hype jobs of the year to create excitement for a PPV.

Match of the Night: Okada vs. Claudio Castagnoli

High quality duel of professional wrestlers.

Grade: B

A fun night overall. The work has already been done for All In, so this episode felt like treading water in a good way. Feuds were touched on to keep the fire warm heading into Wembley Stadium, then the main event scene was epic. Credit to the crowd for rocking hard all show long.

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