This week no appealing tag line. I produced nothing.
- Street Fight: Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Big Bill
- Trios Match: The Patriarchy against The Opps
- Orange Cassidy vs. Roderick Strong in the International Championship Series
- Match Megan Bayne v. Kris Statlander
AEW Dynamics 2/19/25
Live from the Arizona Financial Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona! Tonight on commentary are Excalibur, Taz, Ian Riccaboni; now here comes MJF. Fyi, if either MJF or Hangman Page get physical, they’re getting fined and suspended.
One of the first bouts in AEW history was the inaugural Casino Battle Royal, where Hangman cheap shotted him and destroyed his chances, MJF informs us. But your fave wrestler is here? MJF beat them. MJF defeated whom for the first Dynamite Diamond Ring? Hangman. MJF continues to run down his credentials. Why did he do all of that? He’s MJF. He’s better than you, and you know it.
Why is MJF talking like Hangman doesn’t know who he is? Page knows who he is, and MJF has all of that… and he can’t be happy. Why? Is it because there’s still something that MJF can’t win? And it’s from… them. The people.
SHUT YOUR MOUTH! That’s not the case. MJF says the fans have a chance to deserve who the main character is? The guy who drank a man’s blood? The person who attacked innocent veterans in the locker room? The guy who drove a syringe through a human’s face? The person who burned a house down? The fans love it. “Cowboy s***” chants ring out through the arena. Everyone loves Hangman. But MJF wants to know… after everything that Page has done… does he love himself? After finishing the career of Christopher Daniels? The no talent, jobber, hack…
DON’T YOU DARE! If Page could take out his spine and give it to Daniels he would! Daniels is 10x the man that MJF is! If there’s a wrestling company in our lifetime, he gave himself a portion of it and he died a warrior’s death. Daniels never would have had it any other way. Daniels took care of pro wrestling, even when pro wrestling did not take care of him. Daniels is the finest of us, and it’s men and women like him, that give them the chance to stand in the ring. If MJF’s career ended tonight… what would the fans say about him? A credit to the sport? A tribute to this world Or was MJF an opportunist, and a selfish coward? A man using every shortcut that he could. Why do the supporters still care about Hangman? He knows what is right and what is bad, and he turns the truth about it. Page has lied 100 times, but never once has he lied to the fans, and he’s confronted every difficulty head on, eye to eye. There’s a small part of MJF that is questioning if it’s true, whether its true that he’s a coward that’s lied for five years.
MJF claims the history books don’t give a damn how you get the job done, since MJF has earned everything. Before the doors of this company even opened, the powers that be decided Hangman was the chosen one. MJF is better than Page in every aspect. Name one thing that Page is superior at?
“I am real.”
“You want to be the main character? I got no difficulty being the bad guy.” – MJF.
Security surrounds the ring as the lads draw close, but MJF takes the high road. Wait, no he doesn’t, as MJF spits in his face. Now MJF runs as Hangman dispatches of security, and Christopher Daniels almost gets it. Daniels claims this is what he was fighting for this whole time.
A video package highlighting AEW Grand Slam was shown.
Renee is with the Undisputed Kingdom. ORANGGEEEEE. CASSIDY. We are supposed to dance forever. Roddy knows you’re buddies with Kyle, yet he’s still breaking the back.
The Conglomeration isn’t a stable, it’s a lifestyle. They.. ya know… conglomerate.
Match #1. Trios Match: The Opps vs. The Patriarchy
Shibata and Sabian to start. Foot sweep by Shibata and a kitchen sink. Joe gets the tag and Sabian gets his chest chopped off. Joe tripped Sabian and CRUSHES him with a senton. One for Wayne. Christian… thinks better of it and tags Wayne. Wayne’s chest is hacked off again. Poor guy. Quick tags now among The Opps and Wayne is just getting pounded. Snap mare and a PK as we go to commercial. Running boot to Wayne’s face and a sliding dropkick sends Sabian to the outside. Hook gets the tag and T-Bones everyone. Christian gets dropped to the floor with a clothesline and a Northern Light’s suplex to Wayne. Wayne blocks a throw and hits a fisherman to Hook. Big boot by Shibata! Missile dropkick by Sabian. Lariat by Joe! Fireman’s carry but Joe but instead Christian gets dumped over the top. Elbow suicida by Joe! In the ring, Wayne rolls up Hook for two. High kick by Wayne! Wayne’s World but Hook catches him in mid-air with the RedRum! Christian thinks about making the save but Joe is there… and Christian bails. Wayne taps!
Winners: The Opps
Rating: **3/4. There wasn’t a lot here with the commercial break, but what they did was great and the crowd loved every second of it. I’m here for The Opps.
Renee is with a much more serious, Chris Jericho. Jericho says ignore the bounty on Bandido, he can have his ROH World Heavyweight Title shot at Collision. People forget AEW wouldn’t be here without Chris f’ing Jericho.
Match #2. Street Fight: Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Chris Jericho
Bill starts the match with a massive boot to the face. Both males struggle across the audience now, until Hobbs tries to shove Bill through a guard rail, but Bill launches a sound mixer at his knee. Bill discovers a plumber’s wrench underneath the ring and tries to kill Hobbs, but Hobbs moves and Bill hits the ring post. Hobbs finds a steel chair and blasts Bill in the back. Twice. Three times. Bill finds the wrench and smacks Hobbs in the face! Hobbs is busted open and Bill choke slams him on the steel steps as we go to commercial! We’re back from break and Bill is setting up a table in the ring. Hobbs is here with a trash can and he blasts Bill in the face! Twice! Bryan Keith is here but Hobbs punches through a steel chair and boots Keith in the face and choke slams him through the table. The fight spills to the ramp where Hobbs grabs Bill up… World’s Strongest Slam on the ramp! Uh oh… Hobbs finds the backpack and blasts Bill in the face with it. Hobbs unzips the rucksack.. and it was the bricks. Hobbs now bounces Bill’s head against the steel steps a bunch, and both guys are on top of them, on the ramp. Hobbs, kind of, spinebusters Bill down the steps, off the ramp, and through the barbed-wire tables at ringside! The referee counts Bill.. 8.. 9… 10!
Winner: Powerhouse Hobbs
Rating: **1/2. This one really missed the point for me, as I had quite high aspirations considering what we’ve seen on our route leading up to it. That being said, Hobbs won a clean win and I’m here for that.
Renee is with the Murder Machines. The Murder Machines want to talk about the titles with the Hurt Syndicate, but they’re not here. How about Collision?
The whore you all adore. The harlot you can’t rebut. This tramp… is your new champ. In front of friends, family and former lovers.. Toni grabbed the championship from that horrible bitch Mariah May. The best things come in small packages, but Storm railed her with the biggest bundle there’s ever been. May has been beaten, exiled, and compromised to a permanent end. Toni Storm plus her movie, Queen of the Ring. If Storm is going to be the best, she has to beat the best. If you want to go face to face, tit to tit, or lip to lip, Toni Storm is not hard to find. For God is a woman, and her name… is TIMELESS.
Unbelievable.
Wow, a video package for Gabe Kidd is revealed. Gabe Kidd is coming to Collision!
Renee is here with Willow Nightingale. Willow wasn’t happy with Jon Moxley and Marina Shafir last week and well, here they are again. Willow gets taken out and Moxley commandeers the camera. The Death Riders take the ring and Moxley is the champion therefore he controls everything. Nobody enters inside Moxley’s residence and puts down any challenge to him. Copeland isn’t here, he’s probably still laid out in Australia. Moxley popped Cope’s head off his shoulders and if he shows up at Revolution, he will complete the job.
Enter Jay White. Pac tries to sneak up on White from behind on the entry, but, wait.
YOU THINK YOU KNOW ME.
Adam Copeland is here! Copeland attacks Moxley from behind and White hits the Bladerunner on Pac in the ramp! Spear to Yuta. Cope chases Moxley through the mob with Spike in hand. Cope has the mic and yells this isn’t his arena, this isn’t his stadium, and they aren’t your people…. they’re my people! Cope believes Moxley has no guts, no nuts, and no spine. Cope will take the Death Riders out one by one, and he’s going to kick his ass at Revolution.
Match #3. Megan Bayne vs. Kris Statlander
Both women trade shoulder blocks. Nobody moves. Bayne with a boot and a shoulder tackle and she gets it. Shoulder lock by Statlander with a moonsault. Two count. Mounted punches by Statlander in the corner and a huge high kick. Electric chair by Statlander but Bayne gets free, missing an avalanche in the corner. Statlander charges but eats a spear. Back from break and Statlander drops Bayne with a gordbuster before following up with an axe kick. Statlander thinks Wednesday Night Fever but Bayne blasts her with a right elbow and a deadlift German suplex. Both women roll to the apron now and Statlander drops Bayne with a back suplex! Bayne leaps up after rolling in the ring and brings Statlander in with a deadlift German over the ropes! Bayne sets Statlander up on the top rope and follows her on top. Strikes exchanged now and Statlander.. gets tossed off the top by Penelope Ford! The referee doesn’t see it. F5 by Bayne! One, two, three!
Winner: Megan Bayne
Rating: **1/2. Huge win here for Bayne, immediately making an impact.
Bayne and Ford put the boots to Statlander after the bell, and Thunder Rosa is here to make the save with a chair. Bayne and Ford… don’t depart, though? And we’ve got some major awkwardness here as they kind of battle over a steel chair and then… do nothing. Rough.
Ricochet is here. Much like Kevin Durant, Ricochet is going to move out of the town as quickly as feasible. Since the fans are ungrateful animals, Ricochet will speak directly to the camera. The boos? They don’t matter. When you boo a winner, you boo into a gulf of nothingness, because Ricochet is a winner. Ricochet been whooping ass of all y’all favorite wrestlers since he started here. Winners have something to show for it, exactly as the robe that he is wearing, which is Prince Nana’s, from Jimmy Rave. Ricochet says he came here to win gold, and that’s where his sights are set for 2025.
Who’s house? Oh, it’s Prince Nana. Nana asked Swerve to stay home. Nana says he knows they’ve been beefing, but Ricochet is wearing something that doesn’t belong to him. Three decades Nana has been in this industry, and that robe has a lot to do with it. The robe denotes pride, integrity, and those that we’ve lost. Anyone wearing it has been handed the opportunity to be great, and Nana has not given you that opportunity. If Ricochet is the man he says he is, then give the robe back.
“You’re not getting that robe back, Nana.”
Poor Prince Nana.
Match #4. International Championship Series: Orange Cassidy vs. Roderick Strong
Cassidy rolls outside and hugs Kyle O’Reilly. Suicide dive takes out Roddy, and another hug for Kyle! Big dropkick by Strong and he locks in an abdominal stretch as we go to commercial. Back from break as Cassidy jumps in from the apron with a swinging DDT. Roddy chops his way up while Cassidy is showing the consequences from the punishment. Cassidy walks through the chops and goes pocket hands. More chops by Roddy! Shotgun dropkick by Cassidy with pocket hands, and now he bounces Roddy’s head off a lot of turnbuckles. Diving crossbody off the top. Satellite DDT plants Roddy. Two count. Cassidy thinks Beach Break but Strong counters, as Cassidy rolls him up for two. Beach Break anyhow! Two count. Cassidy thinks about taking the elbow sleeve down but Roddy hits a soaring knee! Back breaker by Roddy, who holds on, another one. End of Heartache! Two count. Roddy seeks the Strong Hold but Cassidy rolls him up for two. Back breaker by Strong and a Texas Clover Leaf, but Cassidy finds the bottom rope. Orange kicks by Cassidy. Cassidy sprints the ropes but is popped up into a gut buster. Sick kick! End of Heartache attempt but Cassidy replies with Stundog Millionaire! Orange Punch! One, two, three!
Winner: Orange Cassidy
Rating: ***1/4. Finish of this one kind of came out of nowhere, with zero meddling from the Undisputed Kingdom, which was wonderful. Match was fun, but it didn’t feel meaningful and I don’t know how important the supporters believed it was either.
Tony Schiavone was here the entire time, and he’s currently in the ring with Orange Cassidy. Next week it’s Cassidy and Takeshita for the International Championship, with the victor going to Revolution to battle Kenny Omega. Don Callis is here, and so is the family. Mark Davis and Konosuke Takeshita put the boots to Orange Cassidy, but here’s Kenny Omega to make the save! The numbers are too much, and Omega finds himself in difficulty. Rolling elbow by Takeshita. Stundog Millionaire by Cassity to Takeshita, a V-Trigger by Omega, and an Orange Punch! Omega and Cassidy stand tall! Omega finds Takeshita’s title and raises it aloft.
Final Thoughts: A highly storyline-heavy episode of Dynamite, and it was a wonderful change of pace. All of the portions had time to breathe, and the fans got a chance to digest it. The MJF and Hangman stuff to kick off the concert was excellent, and that’s going to be a lot of fun on the path to Revolution. The Opps are already huge with the fans and I wouldn’t mind seeing them grab the titles off the Death Riders. The wrestling tonight was fine, but it was more about building intrigue on the route to Revolution. 7/10.
