This week’s Dynamite recap will be a bit on the short side, mainly due to something I want to discuss at the end, especially as it pertains to Jon Moxley and his decision to enter an inpatent alcohol treatment program.
This means that Moxley will be out of action for the foreseeable future as he enters the road to recovery for his alcoholism, and we at RingCrashers wish him the best of luck on this road to recovery. With that in mind, let’s take a look back at what happened last week…
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Previously on All Elite Wrestling…
Results for the 10/27 Dynamite (Episode 108):
- CM Punk def. Bobby Fish via pinfall (12:58) with the Go To Sleep in the opening match of the show.
- MJF def. Bryce Donovan via pinfall (0:35) in a short squash, using the Heatseeker to get the win.
- MJF’s post-match celebration was interrupted by Sting and Darby Allin, who beat down the Pinnacle members as revenge for previous weeks of assaults.
- A “Trick or Treat” match for Dr. Britt Baker vs. Abadon was made for Rampage on Friday.
- Sammy Guevara def. Ethan Page via pinfall (10:58) to retain the TNT Championship. After the match, Ethan and Scorpio Sky beat up Sammy until the Inner Circle ran them off.
- Hikaru Shida def. Serena Deeb via pinfall (10:58) to earn her 50th win and advance in the TBS Championship Tournament. Unfortunately for Shida, there would be no celebration, as Deeb brutally attacked her after the match and further injured Shida’s leg in the process.
- Jon Moxley def. Preston “10” Vance via pinfall (2:04) to advance in the World Title Eliminator Tournament.
- In a lengthy promo, Cody Rhodes promised the fans that he would never “turn”. He’d be interrupted by Andrade El Idolo, who promised to make Cody his “bitch”. This would lead to Andrade and Malakai Black forming an alliance as they beat up Cody. PAC ended up making the save on Cody by fighting Black and Andrade off.
- The Dark Order (Colt Cabana, John Silver, Stu Grayson, and Evil Uno) def. The Elite (Kenny Omega, Adam Cole, and The Young Bucks) via pinfall (13:02) in a Halloween-themed tag match. The Elite were dressed as the Ghostbusters, while the Dark Order were dressed up as different characters. The finish came when “Hangman” Adam Page fooled The Elite by revealing himself as the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, helping the Dark Order get the win.
Results for the 10/29 Rampage (Episode 12):
- Bryan Danielson def. Eddie Kingston via referee stoppage (16:23) to advance to the World Title Eliminator Finals. The match was incredible and should be watched in its entirety.
- CM Punk’s backstage interview was interrupted by an irate Eddie Kingston, upset about his loss in the opening match. The two would get into a confrontation that had to be broken up.
- Dante Martin def. Matt Sydal via pinfall (10:58) in the third encounter between the two. Lio Rush accompanied Dante for the match, but didn’t factor into the decision.
- Dr. Britt Baker DMD def. Abadon via pinfall (7:27) in the “Trick or Treat” match.
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It’s Wednesday Night. You Know What That Means.
From Independence, Missouri, it’s AEW Dynamite live and in living colour. With our three commentators Jim Ross, Excalibur, and Tony Schiavone, we’re set for another night of exciting All Elite Wrestling action.
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Match 1: Kenny Omega vs. Alan “5” Angels
The Story So Far
This match is the latest in the war between the Dark Order and The Elite, fresh off of last week’s massive eight-man tag match, which saw the Dark Order triumph over the Elite, with thanks to a timely assist from “Hangman” Adam Page dressed as the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man.
The Match
A great eight-minute opener that saw Angels take Omega to the limit, even kicking out of one V-Trigger and landing some nice offense on him, including a diving moonsault to the outside. In the end, though, the AEW World Champion prevailed by finishing Angels off with two V-Triggers for the 1, 2, 3.
Kenny Omega def. Alan “5” Angels via pinfall (8:01)
Post-Match
Kenny has the mic and he says that while Angels had a good opportunity, he’s the God of Pro Wrestling and he’s got the power to giveth and taketh away. He tells Michael Nakazawa to give him a chair.
With the chair in hand, he looks to do a One-Winged Angel on the steel chair, but he’s interrupted by the arrival of “Hangman” Adam Page. Michael Nakazawa attempts to cut him off at the pass, but he gets decked by Page. Omega has the chair in hand, but Angels disarms him and Hangman’s got Kenny in position for the Buckshot Lariat. Omega ducks the attack and makes a hasty escape up the ramp. With a mic in hand, Hangman eyes Omega’s AEW World Title.
“Kenny, I think you forgot something…” Hangman says with the AEW Title in hand. “But, I’m gonna be nice and lay it right here. You better hold on tight to it. You got 10 days.” Omega gets his belt from the ring and just backs away from Hangman. Is his history World Championship reign in jeopardy courtesy of a more confident Cowboy?
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Malakai Black’s Warning for Cody
In his domain, Malaki Black speaks, saying that Tony Khan banning him from ringside for Cody Rhodes’ match with Andrade El Idolo won’t amount to anything, because in his words, it wasn’t just Marcus who betrayed Caesar when he was assasinated.
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CM Punk Speaks Candidly
To another loud reception from the crowd, CM Punk makes his entrance. Once he gets the mic, he says that he’s not in the best mood at the moment and asks the crowd not to chant for him. Instead, Punk wants to talk seriously to us for a moment about two people who aren’t here today — one of whom has a legitimate reason: that person being Jon Moxley. Punk then asks the fans to chant for Mox, which they do.
Punk says that although he and Jon aren’t the best of friends, when he was told about Jon’s situation, he empathized with him, being in a similar place of keeping on going while the injuries and sickness piled up. He declares that he doesn’t want anyone to criticize Mox for his decision.
Punk goes on to tell everyone watching in the building and on TV that if they needed help, just ask for it because there’s nothing more courageous to do than seeking help when you need it.
That leads Punk to the topic of the second person who isn’t at Dynamite tonight: Eddie Kingston. He mentions Eddie interrupting him last Friday on Rampage, reiterating that he doesn’t’ like being interrupted. Punk goes on to call whatever beef Eddie has with him as being “fabricated” and that he should apologize to him for it this Friday.
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Miro’s Golden Opportunity
In a pretape segment, Miro talks about his inclusion in the World Title Eliminator when he faces Orange Cassidy later tonight. He wonders if his God is playing with him or giving him another chance to prove himself to Him and to her. Miro promises that he will be Champion, and that he’ll be loved and that he will forgive his God.
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The SuperKliq and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Roving reporter Alex Marvez is with Adam Cole and the Young Bucks, better known as The SuperKliq. They boast about not being afraid of anything, but they’re confronted by Christian Cage. The SuperKliq tells Christian that he’s outnumbered, and that’s when Luchasaurus shows up to back Christian up. A fight soon ensues, which eventually finds its way into the arena area!
The SuperKliq manage to gain a momentary advantage, but that stops as Jungle Boy literally leaps into action to take out Cole and the Bucks. Matt Jackson tries to escape, but Christian spears him on the stage. He sets up Matt for the Killswitch, but he eats a Nick Jackson superkick instead. The Bucks try to make their exit, but Luchasaurus cuts them off. Jungle Boy sends Matt flying down the ramp with a hurricanrana. Luchasaurus grabs Nick by the throat and chokeslams him onto Adam Cole.
Jungle Boy locks the Snare Trap on Adam Cole, putting him to sleep. Christian appears with two chairs in hand and he’s got something dangerous on his mind. Placing one chair underneath Cole and holding the other in his hand, Christian swings and slams it down Cole’s prone head!
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Ruby Soho vs. Kris Statlander Preview
We get a video hyping the second-round TBS Championship Tournament match between Ruby and Statlander. The newcomer to AEW says that she doesn’t need a title belt to be a leader, but a little gold wouldn’t hurt. Soho says that she’s confident in her chances of winning.
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Match 2: AAA World Tag Team Championship Match – FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) vs. Samuray Del Sol
The Story So Far
FTR recently captured the AAA World Tag Titles from the Lucha Brothers through underhanded chicanery a couple of weeks ago. They’re set to defend it against two of AAA’s top stars: Aerostar (who you might recognize from Lucha Underground) and Samuray Del Sol (formerly Kalisto from WWE).
The Match
Harwood & Wheeler retain their AAA Tag Team gold after a good back-and-forth contest that saw Aerostar & Samuray get their high-flying moves in, though it wasn’t enough, as FTR once again used dirty tactics to win — in this case, with Wheeler rolling up the tights and holding the ropes when pinning Aerostar for the win.
FTR def. Aerostar & Samuray Del Sol via pinfall (8:30)
(FTR retain the AAA World Tag Team Championship)
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Who Will Represent the American Top Team At Full Gear?
All five members of The Inner Circle are out to a great reaction from the crowd, as they’re here to decide which members of Dan Lambert’s American Top Team will join the Men of the Year for the Minneapolis Street Fight at Full Gear.
On cue, Lambert and ATT appear on the ramp, with the fans booing the crap out of them. Lambert introduces his crew, which include Andrei Arlovski, Junior Dos Santos, as well as a couple of ham-n-eggers from the Bellator league.
First up, Jake Hager selects JDS to fill the team. Santana then opts to pick Arlovski as the second ATT member, even making fun of Arlovski’s sharp vampire-like teeth in the process.
Lambert interrupts the Inner Circle, bringing up the awful things that Jericho said about Paige VanZant last week. He mentions that VanZant’s husband (one of the Bellator guys) is also one of the choices before VanZant interrupts, saying that he doesn’t need a man to fight for her. She says that she can fight all five Inner Circle members by herself.
This turns into Jericho making yet another unnecessary dig at VanZant as the other Inner Circle members join in on it. The long and short of it is that Jericho says that since Dan Lambert said he was the “first” member of American Top Team, that means he’ll be the final member that the Inner Circle will face at Full Gear.
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Match 3: Jamie Hayter vs. Anna Jay (TBS Championship Tournament First Round)
The Story So Far
There hasn’t been any prior history between Anna Jay and Jamie Hayter, though Anna’s best friend, Tay Conti, will be set to take on Dr. Britt Baker for the AEW Women’s Title at Full Gear on November 13th.
The Match
Roughly a five-minute match for Anna and Jamie that ends with Hayter advancing after Rebel (not Reba) and Dr. Britt Baker DMD provides a distraction on Anna to help their ally win this first-round TBS Championship match.
Jamie Hayter def. Anna Jay via pinfall (5:56)
(Hayter advances to the second round of the TBS Championship Tournament)
Post-Match
Team DMD continues the assault on Anna Jay until Tay Conti makes the save. The heels still have the advantage, but Thunder Rosa (Hayter’s second-round opponent in the TBS Tournament) evens things up to send Team DMD retreating.
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MJF Has Words for Darby Allin
The theme music of one Maxwell Jacob Friedman signals the arrival of the egotistical Salt of the Earth, with the Kansas City fans letting Max know how much they hate him.
Max addresses Darby Allin in the crowd, stating that AEW doesn’t function without the two of them. He says that the other two pillars (Sammy Guevara and Jungle Boy) are great, but “they’re not us”. Max goes on to wonder why they boo him but cheer Darby, declaring that the reason for that is that while he is a symbol of everything people want to be in life, Darby is an outcast who will never be a “functioning member of society”.
MJF says that “Darbarino” will lose at Full Gear because he’s weak and too concerned with battering him and not actually winning the match. He continues to pump his tires about being the best in the ring because nobody has beaten him cleanly. That’s when Darby Allin interrupts Max.
Darby says that Max is right about everything he said about him being an outcast, but at Full Gear, he’s gonna leave his skateboard at home and beat MJF in a wrestling match. For now, though, he’s more than fine with taking out his anger at MJF by kicking his ass. Darby heads through the crowd, but MJF runs away from the ring. He’s intercepted by Sting and a group of people in matching black attire and Darby masks. Wardlow and Shawn Spears attempt to fight Sting and the Darby mask guys, while MJF and the real Darby are brawling it out in the crowd. Max gets the momentary advantage with an eye rake and a toss into the barricades, but Darby fights back. He places MJF’s prone body against the ringside barricade and backs off. With a full head of steam, he clotheslines MJF over the barricade!
Darby throws MJF back into the ring and looks to have him in position for a Coffin Drop, but MJF escapes at the last second.
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Match 4: Andrade El Idolo vs. Cody Rhodes
The Story So Far
Andrade found himself in the orbit of “The Codyverse” when Malakai Black attacked PAC after Andrade’s match against The Bastard on Rampage a few weeks ago. This prompted Cody to intervene, which led to Andrade getting involved in Cody’s match against Black on Saturday Night Dynamite one night later.
The Match
A wild back-and-forth match between Andrade and Cody that concluded with FTR assisting Andrade by hitting Cody with their AAA Tag Titles. This allowed for Andrade to finish off Cody with the Hammerlock DDT and the surprise win.
Andrade El Idolo def. Cody Rhodes via pinfall (10:33)
Post-Match
Tully Blanchard makes his way down to the ring as FTR and Andrade put the boots to Cody Rhodes. Arn Anderson enters the ring and confronts his former Four Horsemen ally Tully. It looks as though they’re gonna have a fight, but the Lucha Brothers make the save and begin fighting with FTR.
Penta (wearing the most amazing sweater ever) and Rey Fenix get their shots in on Dax and Cash. They superkick Dax and set him up for Fear Factor. Cash is able to make the last-second save for his partner.
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The Budge vs. The Meat Man
Tony Schiavone is in the ring with John Silver, who talks about his match this Friday on Rampage against Adam Cole, who he has christened as “Budge” (in reference to a BTE running gag). Silver says he’s gonna get “The Meat Man” and kick Budge’s ass on Friday.
Match 5: World Title Eliminator Semifinals – Miro vs. Orange Cassidy
The Story So Far
Miro is a last-second replacement for Jon Moxley, who was originally slated to face Orange Cassidy in this World Title Eliminator match. That said, there is some history between these two men. Miro attacked Orange in the Dynamite Diamond Ring match against MJF to cost him that match. This was part of a bigger feud between Miro and Kip Sabian and Orange and the Best Friends, which culiminated in an amazing Arcade Anarchy match that saw Best Friends win in the end.
The Match
Despite the short length of the main event match, it wasn’t a total squash as people predicted. Orange manages to hit his signature move, the Beach Break, on Miro. He even puts the Bulgarian brute through a ringside table at one point, too. Unfortunately, though, that isn’t enough as Miro scores a big victory after a Game Over submission on OC. Bryan Danielson joined the commentators for this match.
Miro def. Orange Cassidy via pinfall (7:27)
(Miro advances to World Title Eliminator Finals)
Post-Match
Bryan Danielson confronts his Full Gear opponent in the ring and offers a handshake, but Miro backs off instead. The commentators plug that the card for next week’s go-home Dynamite will be revealed on Rampage this Friday.
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This Friday on Rampage
- Adam Cole vs. John Silver
- TBS Championship Tournament First-Round Match: The Bunny vs. Red Velvet
- CM Punk & Eddie Kingston face-to-face
Next Wednesday on Dynamite
- Full Gear go-home show
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The Last Word
A rather eventful episode of Dynamite, to say the least, but honestly, that’s largely secondary to the brave decision that Jon Moxley made this past week. With that in mind, there’s quite a few things I wanted to get off my chest concerning this very serious topic.
A couple of weeks ago, “Hangman” Page cut a promo where he defined what “cowboy shit” meant to him, which included helping out your friends when you needed it and being there for your loved ones, even during a high point of personal success. That promo was definitely on my mind when I heard of the news about Moxley.
Mox was slated for a big match at Full Gear, which would’ve likely led to an AEW World Title match in the near future, and knowing that, he still made a bold choice to forgo that to sort out his own problems and take care of himself. That, my friends, takes true courage. Having a loving wife and a newborn at home certainly helps put your own life in perspective and can inform decisions where you want to look out for them however you can.
“You don’t know Jon personally, so why does this affect you?” one might ask me. But, see, that’s the thing. Sure, we don’t know Mox on a personal level, but as a high-profile athlete with millions of fans, seeing him take this important step should hopefully serve as inspiration for these fans that figuring your shit out is more than okay, and that there’s nothing wrong with it whatsoever. Because at the end of the day, prolific figures like Moxley are human just like the rest of us. Mox’s in-ring persona is that of a badass with a devil-may-care attitude, but his choice to seek help for alcoholism makes him a true badass in real life.
For whatever reason, there’s been a stigma attached to asking for help in that it’s perceived as a sign of “weakness”. That’s a notion that I could not disagree with even more. The human experience isn’t about being infallible and perfect or whatever. It’s about mistakes. It’s about learning from these mistakes, and when it comes time for it, seeking help to learn from our mistakes. That’s what makes us human.
The idea that toughing it out without taking time to take care of yourself should be an idea that needs to be put to bed. As CM Punk said in his promo, thinking you’re a tough guy who doesn’t need any help is something that won’t benefit anyone, especially yourself. At the end of the day, I think that “help” shouldn’t be perceived as a verboten word. It should be encouraged and that hopefully, the case of Jon Moxley will inspire you or your loved ones to seek help or give help to those that need it most. Whether it’s just checking in or sending an encouraging message to them. Every little bit of help does have a positive effect, and it just might be the thing they need to be uplifted.
I want to close off by saying that finding help should always be a course of action you take when you need it. With that in mind, here are some resources you can use if you or a loved one need it most:
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- The SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) hotline (USA) — 1-800-662-HELP (4357)
- National Suicide Prevention Hotline (USA) – 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
- The Canada Suicide Prevention Service – 1-833-456-4566
- Kids Help Phone (Canada) – 1-800-668-6868
- Hope For Wellness Helpline (Canada) — 1-855-242-3310 or at hopeforwellness.ca
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Marc Quill is the editor of RingCrashers, GateCrashers’ home for all your All Elite Wrestling and indie wrestling needs. He’s also the web novelist behind Skye Emery: Bluebird, which you can read here. You can chat with him about wrestling, comics, and stuff in general on @MarcQuill on Twitter.
