Heydorn's AEW Dynamite Receipt 4/16/25
The good, bad, and ugly from this week's episode of AEW Dynamite.
-As expected, Mercedes Mone vs. Athena was an excellent match. No question about it. Both women worked very hard and put together a match that capitalized on not just their athleticism, but their creativity as performers. They both left something in the tank for future matches too. The way the finish played out and the way that Athena had Mone on the ropes for a lot of the match opens up clear lanes to run it back sooner rather than later.
Snap
-The Young Bucks’ passive aggressive attitude toward Adam Page was well put on by them this week. If they keep going down that path, when Page snaps on them, it’s going to be a moment.
-Speaking of Page, he had a nice match with a debuting Josh Alexander this week in the men’s Owen Hart Cup Tournament. They both worked a stiff match and even though Page got the win, Alexander had some moments to shine.
-Alexander is a nice get for AEW. Stylistically, he’s different from other recent guys they’ve brought in and has experience at the top of a company. He lost his first match out, but the post-match attack on Page is telling. AEW has plans for him and he seemingly will be a focus around one of the biggest babyfaces on the show for the near future. Potentially aligning with a big-time heel faction isn’t the worst thing for him either.
-The Christian Cage and Nick Wayne saga is strong low-card content on Dynamite. Not sure what a Cage vs. Wayne match does for anyone at this point, but letting Wayne break out of his shell a bit is a smart move. I also really liked how the storyline between Cage and Wayne gives context to Wayne being in the Best of the Super Juniors Tournament in New Japan.
Syndicate rolls
-The Hurt Syndicate roll on. Another big pop and another win this week on Dynamite. MJF bringing out a group of women to try and earn his way into the group caused the eyes to roll a bit. Nothing bad or offensive, but just seemed like something from two eras ago in wrestling.
-Holy crap. Will Ospreay vs. Konosuke Takeshita was a damn classic. Goodness. These two worked at an unbelievable pace, hit hard, and left the rest of the field in the tournament going … “oh crap.” Ospreay continues to deliver at obscenely high levels when he’s asked to. Just a tremendous match and one of the best ever on Dynamite on a historic night for that show.
Thank you, Joe
-The Opps vs. The Death Riders for the AEW World Trios Championships in the main event had a big hill to climb in following Ospreay vs. Takeshita. I thought it did well, though. Thank Samoa Joe for that. He brought an intensity and energy to the match, which helped lift it and the audience. Opps securing the Trios Championships was a fun way to end the historic show, while also positioning Joe for an AEW World Championship match at Double or Nothing.
What did you think of this week’s episode of AEW Dynamite? Let us know in the comments!
Subscribe to the Brass Ring Media YouTube channel HERE and 1TS YouTube channel HERE.
Become a Brass Ring Media member HERE.