AEW ‘Dynamite’ Digest: Kenny Omega Drops a Bombshell (RECAP)
Spoiler Alert
[Warning: The below contains spoilers for the February 17, 2021 edition of AEW Dynamite]
The card for Revolution is beginning to take shape, and, based on the events of the February 18 edition of Dynamite, it could be AEW‘s most violent PPV ever.
Let’s break down all the highlights.
Death Is Coming to Town
The main event was another barnburner, featuring Jon Moxley teaming with Rey Fenix and Lancer Archer to take on Eddie Kingston, The Butcher, and The Blade. Between Fenix and Archer’s mind-blowing tandem offense and Mox and Kingston’s stiff shots, I must have uttered “holy s**t” at least half a dozen times.
But the biggest “holy s**t” moment came after the match. The Good Brothers ambushed Mox while he was celebrating, making way for AEW World Champion Kenny Omega, who seemed to be dressed in a Jerry Seinfeld-style puffy shirt. But don’t let the fancy outfit fool you; Omega wasn’t there to party and drink cocktails.
All Elite Wrestling
The World champ revealed that Mox has been granted his title rematch for Revolution, but Omega gets to pick the stipulation. His choice? An exploding barbed wire death match!
First, someone check on Mox’s pregnant wife, Renee Paquette. Second, What?! This is a barbaric old-school style match popularized in Japan in the ’90s in promotions like FMW. I don’t think we’ve ever seen it attempted in the U.S. by a nationally televised wrestling company. This is going to be brutal!
Riho Returns
After an 11-month absence due to travel restrictions, Riho returned to AEW to a huge reaction and wasted no time stealing the show. The former AEW Women’s Champion faced off with NWA Women’s Champion Serena Deeb in a fantastic first-round match in the Women’s Championship Eliminator.
Riho and Deeb had instant chemistry, lots of mat-based chain-wrestling to start out before picking up the speed with more high-impact moves. Ultimately, Riho picked up the victory in what was undoubtedly the match of the night.
Big Money Match
Hangman Adam Page and Matt Hardy scored another tag team victory, this time over TH2. The match was solid if a little sloppy towards the end — did Jack Evans get knocked loopy? But the important stuff happened in the aftermath.
Hardy was delighted that Hangman seemingly signed a contract with him last week. That’s when Hangman signaled for Jacksonville Jaguars mascot Jaxon de Ville to bring out the REAL contract, which turned out to be for a match between Hangman and Hardy at Revolution. If Hardy loses, he owes Hangman 100% of his earnings for the first quarter of 2021.
All Elite Wrestling
However, Hardy was one-step ahead — he must have watched last week’s Dynamite and saw the switcheroo. Hardy goaded Hangman into putting his first-quarter earnings on the line too. That’s when Hangman was blasted from behind by Jaxon, who revealed himself to be Private Party’s Isiah Kassidy.
TH2 joined in on the beatdown until the Dark Order ran in to make the save. Perhaps there is still a chance for Hangman and the Dark Order to live happily ever after?
Tag Team Specials
This show featured two superb tag team matches. The first saw the Young Bucks defending the AEW Tag Team Championships against the Inner Circle’s Santana & Ortiz.
Santana & Ortiz fought with a fire we haven’t seen in some time, hitting some incredible double-team maneuvers. The Bucks’ roll-up victory was a little underwhelming as a finish, but I appreciated how close the challengers came to winning throughout the match.
Afterward, the Inner Circle put the boots in on the Bucks, with the No. 1 Contender’s, MJF and Chris Jericho, applying their submissions on a weakened Matt and Nick Jackson. Oh, and the Inner Circle also got in the face of Papa Buck seated at ringside.
The second of the tag matches saw FTR vs. Matt & Mike Sydal. This was just a really solid, well-paced match, with the ground-and-pound style of FTR trying to neutralize the high-flying Sydals. Also, there was a vicious uppercut from Cash Wheeler in this match that made my jaw wince.
FTR was victorious before Jurassic Express returned for a measure of revenge afterward.
Sting Goes Splat
For weeks, fans have been begging Sting to do something. Well, this week, he finally got physical with Team Taz and paid the price, as Brian Cage power-bombed the Icon in the middle of the ring.
All Elite Wrestling
I was surprised to see Sting taking an actual bump, given his history of neck problems. But I’d like to assume that means he’s been given the all-clear. It certainly added some extra spice to this feud.
Other Notes
Inner Circle Turmoil: Jericho declared that Sammy Guevara is “dead to him” after walking out on the Inner Circle last week.
Gender Reveal: Brandi and Cody Rhodes revealed that they’re having a little girl. I can’t wait for Baby Rhodes versus Baby Moxley in 20 years (in an Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch, obviously).
Kindergarten Kenny: Omega reading to a group of pre-schoolers is not something I expected to see. That said, I didn’t expect Jim Ross to accidentally call Omega the WWE Champion either (the forbidden door surely doesn’t open that far?!).
AEW Dynamite, Wednesday, TNT
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