AEW Dynamite - December 6, 2023
by Doc Allen
Live from the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. WrestleTix estimates attendance at 5,213. Our hosts are Excalibur and Taz.
Continental Classic - Gold League
Jon Moxley vs. Rush
They greet each other with chops. Mox runs into Rush' overhead throw. They take turns throwing one another over the guard rail, a countout win would be totally acceptable to either of them. The brawl continues in back and forth fashion, until Rush fakes a Bull Horns to hit a disrespectful kick. Mox waves the double birds, but Rush soon hits a power slam for 2. Rush gets overconfident and Mox hits a blindside cutter. Superplex by Mox gets a late 1 count. Rush responds with another overhead throw into the guard rail. Back from commercials, Mox nails an Impaler DDT, which also seems to injure Rush' knee. Rush answers with a straightjacket piledriver. Superplex by Rush gets 2. Mox pops up for a tope suicida. They both narrowly avoid getting counted out. Mox blocks the Bulls Horns. Rush hits a headbutt, but Mox counters the Bull Horns again with a lariat. Death Rider gets 2, so Mox locks on the Bulldog Choke. Rush passes out at 14:33. Entertaining, no-nonsense brawl, ***½.Winner: Jon Moxley
Rush immediately wakes up when "Wild Thing" starts blaring on the house speakers, and he blames the referee for his loss.
Jay White and Jay Lethal exchange dueling video promos. There are some hard feelings left over from their ROH days.
Renee Paquette interviews The Kingdom and Broken Roderick Strong on the stage. Strong's new gimmick (aside from being eternally injured) is yelling everyone's name during his promos. Roddy dramatically stands up from the chair, the Kingdom reacts like this is some kind of miracle. He throws the chair away and celebrates his newfound health.
Renee Paquette catches Hangman Adam Page for an interview. Swerve might have broken into his house, but accepts his defeat at Full Gear. Hangman knows what Swerve is looking for and vows to make sure he never gets it. AEW World Champion MJF saunters in, but Page isn't interested in talking. MJF lures him into an argument. They accuse each other of being The Devil until Samoa Joe shows up to talk some sense into them. When Joe is the voice of reason in the room, you know you're in trouble.
Continental Classic - Gold League
Mark Briscoe vs. Swerve Strickland
Mark tweaks Swerve's bandaged shoulder with an armdrag. They competitively trade holds. Mark builds some steam with a big boot. Swerve takes control by focusing on Mark's neck and spine. Mark answers with a low dropkick, they trade chops on the apron until Mark hits an enziguri. Swerve backdrops Mark into the crowd and then delivers a brutal vertical suplex off the barricade! Back from commercials, Strickland is still dominating and nails a hard neckbreaker. Mark mounts a comeback with Redneck Kung Fu. Brainbuster by Mark gets 2. Swerve fires back with a wheelbarrow German suplex. Rolling cutter and superkick by Strickland gets a quiet nearfall. Mark blocks a superplex and palms Swerve to ringside for a somersault senton. Mark's lariat gets a hot nearfall. Swerve blocks the J-Driller, hits a step up kick, but Mark blocks the 450 splash for a fantastic false finish. DVD by Mark, but Swerve blocks the Froggy Elbow for another nice kickout at 2. Crowd gives them a standing ovation. Swerve hits a DVD onto the apron and nails the Swerve Stomp to win at 15:44. Just when I was writing this off as the Mark Briscoe **¾ special, they hit third gear by making a convincing case for a possible Briscoe upset. The fans wanted that Mark win so bad, it hurts, ****.Winner: Swerve Strickland
Renee Paquette interviews Mariah May backstage. May is carefully planning her in-ring debut but won't give any details, because tonight is all about Toni Storm!
Samoa Joe and AEW World Champion MJF vs. The Devil's Masked Men
The match doesn't happen. There's no sign of MJF as Joe gets surrounded by masked men. The lights go out, and all the goons are gone. The Devil appears on the big screen and then reveals that MJF has been taken out with a beer bottle in the garage. Looks like someone is trying to frame everyone's favorite Anxious Millennial Cowboy.Jon Moxley takes time out of his busy schedule brooding backstage to talk to the camera. He's going to win the Continental Classic because he's the Ace of the World. Swerve Strickland interrupts for some polite disagreements. They'll meet at Winter is Coming.
Ben Makiewicz of Turner Classic Movies makes an all-time random cameo. He compares Toni Storm to the great classic Hollywood actors. She is appearing in her greatest role, so watch out for the shoe. This is fabulous.
AEW Women's Championship:
Toni Storm © (with Luther) vs. Skye Blue
They lock up and exchange holds. They exchange wristlock takedowns, and Toni goes into a violent rage. Skye hits a rana but Toni blocks a dive with her fist. Toni sits on Luther's shoulders and throws Skye off the apron. Mariah May arrives to scout the competition. Toni hits a mean hip attack against the guard rails. Back from commercials, Toni winds up a punch but Skye blocks for her rally. High crossbody by Skye gets 2. Toni answers with a German suplex. Skye counters into a hip attack and running boot to the face. Code Blue gets 2. Toni responds with a superplex and a hip attack. Skye attempts a counter, but Toni reverses a pinning predicament to win at 9:21. Overwhelming solid back and forth match, **¾.Winner and still AEW Women's Champion: Toni Storm
AEW Original Riho makes a surprise return to remove Toni from the ring with a dropkick. Luther comes to Toni's aid and carries her away before Riho can dish out any real punishment.
Adam Copeland vs. Christian Cage video package. They were once closer than brothers but now they must fight to the death.
Continental Classic - Gold League
Jay Lethal vs. Jay White
I'll go out on a limb and predict that someone named Jay will win this one. The smart mark crowd treats this like a big time match, and amusingly chants "Let's go, Jay." The Jays trade holds until reaching a stalemate. Lethal stops for the Jarrett strut, but White instantly capitalizes. Lethal puts together a combination of quick attacks and cartwheels into a low dropkick. Lethal finally is allowed to strut. They exchange eye rakes, White goes to work on the knee. White's DDT gets 2. Back from commercials, Lethal desperately hits a Lethal Combination. Lariat by Lethal, followed by a slick tope suicida. Lethal works a torture rack and then nails a Finlay Roll and Hail to the King elbow drop. White kicks out! White targets the knee again and hits a buckle suplex. Brainbuster by White gets 2. They exchange chops and eye rakes until White nails a sudden suplex. They block finishers until White stacks Lethal for 3 at 11:21! The tournament stakes and hot crowd made this bout a real winner, ***½.Winner: Jay White
TNT Championship:
Christian Cage © vs. Adam Copeland
Fans chant "holy sh!t" at the bell. Copeland quickly goes for a sleeper, Christian gets the ropes. Copeland hammers the chest and knocks Christian into the barricade. Copeland blocks a low blow and dissects the hand. Christian pulls Copeland's throat into the ring post to gain control. Back from commercials, Christian is raking Copeland's face whenever possible while working a chinlock. Copeland counters with a desperation Russian leg sweep from the buckles. Copeland blocks the Pendulum kick and snaps Christian's neck on the ropes. Copeland nails a flying clothesline from the apron. Christian answers with a drop toe hold into the steps, followed by the Frog Splash for only 2. Copeland blocks a spear and dishes out an Impaler DDT. They fight on the top rope until Copeland nails a Liger Bomb for a good nearfall. They trade rapid counters until Copeland applies the Crossface. Christian leaps over a spear and hits the Killswitch for a great nearfall. Christian misses a spear and kicks referee's manhood. Christian misses a belt shot, but they both go for spears and butt heads. Nick Wayne's mother waltzes in while everyone is down. She decides to smash the TNT belt into Adam's face. Christian is confused, yet pleased. He hits the Killswitch and then stomps Copeland's face into the TNT tile. The ref wakes up to count the pinfall at 18:05. This was a tremendous grudge match. I was worried that they'd be upstaged by all the great action on the undercard, but they busted their butts and delivered the goods. The bullf*ckery finish hurts this rating, but adds a new wrinkle to Christian's Patriarchy stable. Great fight, good soap opera, ***¾.Winner and still TNT Champion: Christian Cage
Final Thoughts: All around great episode of Dynamite. If you haven't watched in a while, this would be a good one to catch. Recommended.
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