AEW Dynamite recap & reactions: Enemies of my enemy are still enemies (2025)

AEW Dynamite (Dec. 18, 2024) emanated from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, DC. The Holiday Bash special featured Jon Moxley’s enemies unable to coexist, Darby Allin tearing the house down with Will Ospreay, Mercedes Moné showing Anna Jay the price to pay, and more.

Catch up on all the details with excellent play-by-play from Claire Elizabeth.

No trust among enemies

The main event of Dynamite was Jon Moxley, PAC, & Wheeler Yuta battling Orange Cassidy, Jay White, & Hangman Page in trios action. Mox’s master plan was for the egos of his challengers to run wild prior to the four-way world title bout at Worlds End. That plan worked well enough. The saying goes that the enemies of my enemy are my friends. Well, Cassidy, White, and Hangman are still enemies.

Tension started early with Hangman demanding first crack at punching Moxley.

During the match, Moxley played hard to get and avoided the cowboy. When Hangman had his opportunity to tango, White tagged himself in. Hangman was peeved and split from his team to exit to the back.

The Death Riders isolated White for an extended period. Hot tag to Cassidy. Chaos took over for moves all around, and Moxley was left standing. That’s when Hangman picked his spot to return. The cowboy sized up a buckshot lariat, however, Cassidy was quicker to the draw for a superman punch on Mox. Hangman was angry all over again.

After Yuta shoved Cassidy into Hangman, the cowboy launched for the buckshot aiming at OC. Cassidy ducked, and Yuta took the contact. White added a Blade Runner to PAC. The challengers argued in the ring. Moxley swooped in for a roll-up on Cassidy to steal the win.

As the challengers continued to bicker, the Death Riders surrounded the ring. Cassidy, White, and Hangman finally recognized the danger of the situation, then they united to fight back. Moxley ran away with help from Marina Shafir.

The ‘enemy of my enemy’ plot was both good and bad in this scenario. It created an interesting dynamic during the match. Hangman caused great drama waiting for his return. The idea fell under the scrutiny of who cares if they are on the same page. Commentary harped on how they aren’t a united front as if that was an important point. It was a meaningless trios contest, so a loss doesn’t affect anybody. When the time comes at Worlds End, it will be every man for himself anyway. White and Hangman want the world title for themselves, and Cassidy just wants it out of Moxley’s hands. Acting like all the tension was a big deal felt silly.

Continental Classic

Two matches were on the docket for the Continental Classic.

Darby Allin and Will Ospreay tore the house down in a fantastic fight for the Gold League. Allin’s speed was key early. His recklessness was also a major factor. Allin had Ospreay down for a Coffin Drop, but Ospreay rolled under the ropes. Allin took the dive anyway. Ospreay moved, and Allin crashed onto the apron taking serious damage to his spine.

The action went into a higher gear with this amazing Hidden Blade sequence followed with a Code Red counter.

The closing sequence was awesome as well. It started with a Styles Clash on the apron from Ospreay.

Allin barely beat the ten-count back into the ring. He ate a springboard cutter for his troubles but still managed to kick out on the cover. Ospreay lifted Allin for the Stormbreaker, and that’s when Allin flipped the switch to counter for a Scorpion Death Drop. Allin added two consecutive Coffin Drop dives to seal the win. Allin and Ospreay both have 6 points apiece.

Wow. What a match. The creativity and athleticism were amazing. Ospreay and Allin have such good chemistry together. This is the type of match that leaves me speechless. The result was a surprise in the sense that Allin was working as the underdog, especially after the Coffin Drop gone awry. The intense rally was electric. Allin has to be a favorite now after that performance. Perhaps winning the Continental Classic is the boost he needs to destroy the Death Riders and take the world title from Jon Moxley.

In the Blue League, Shelton Benjamin handled business against the Beast Mortos. This fight was more about a story point than the action speaking for itself. MVP wanted Shelton to make a statement for the Hurt Syndicate. The objective was to hurt Mortos. Beast got his offense in and had a cool moment of shaking off the impact of a powerslam. Shelton kept his composure to execute three consecutive German suplexes. He hammered two running knees in the corner then closed with the Hurt Fall finisher. Shelton now has 6 points, and Mortos remains at 0.

The match was fine for its purpose. The aftermath was more intriguing. The Hurt Syndicate pounded bull meat until Daniel Garcia arrived on stage. (Garcia versus Shelton is booked for Collision.) Garcia noticed that the numbers were against him, but he still wanted to fight anyway. As Garcia rushed to the ring, Mark Briscoe ran in by his side. The numbers and MVP’s cane were too much. Lashley muscled up, and the Hurt Syndicate stood tall with Shelton holding the TNT title.

On top of the Continental Classic stakes, Garcia versus Shelton should be personal. The way that Shelton held the TNT belt makes me think he could be getting the non-title win to set up a rematch down the line. That’s enough of a hook for me to be interested in finding out the answer on Saturday night.

Let’s jam through the rest of Dynamite.

TBS Championship: Mercedes Moné defeated Anna Jay to retain the title. Anna went with a straightforward line of attack, while Mercedes worked angles. Anna almost won on a Gory Bomb, but Mercedes grabbed the ropes to break the pinfall. Anna kept on the pressure for a Queen Slayer choke in the center of the ring. Mercedes escaped by biting Anna’s arm to release the submission. The tide turned when Anna stepped into a crossface from Mercedes. The challenger reached the ropes for the break. Mercedes kept momentum on her side for a vicious sunset bomb into the turnbuckles. Running knees into the corner set the stage for the Moné Maker to finish. Kris Statlander was shown backstage watching the bout, so there’s a good chance that the rematch is coming.

Mighty good match. Anna looked strong as tough competition to solidify her recent rise. The finish was emphatic to make a statement. The visual of Anna’s head hitting the turnbuckle on the sunset bomb made that closing sequence feel believable. Not to mention, execution of the move was pretty darn cool.

MJF live! MJF graced the peons with his presence live. He told a story about helping malnourished people, then a skinny picture of Adam Cole was on the big screen. Once MJF’s jokes were over, Cole himself was on the big screen. He met with Tony Khan to ensure no Dynamite Ring cheating in their match, so the Kingdom will be ringside to watch his back. The video message continued playing as a trap, while Cole appeared in the ring to attack from behind.

Typical behavior from the heel. Cole stacked the deck in his favor and executed a sneak attack. MJF was right all along. It was nice to see MJF live in an attempt to heat this feud, however, I don’t think this scene changed any minds. If you were all in on the story, this was probably good fun. If you were all out on the story, then this was a thumb twiddler.

Christian Cage & Nick Wayne defeated Hook & Katsuyori Shibata. The Patriarchy isolated Hook. Hot tag to Shibata to clean house. The match broke down in the end with interference. When Shibata was grooving, Christian hooked his foot from the outside. Hook ran over to suplex Christian on the floor. Shibata caught Wayne for a sleeper. As Shibata went to finish with the penalty kick, Mama Wayne distracted the referee while Kip Sabin hopped onto the apron. Hook handled Sabian with a Redrum choke. That left an opening for Christian to snatch Shibata for the Killswitch. Christian dragged his son’s body over for the pin to steal the win.

That was a crafty way to justify the result. Just when it looked like the babyfaces had things under control, Christian was a step ahead. It felt natural to fit how Christian operates. Hook and Shibata scored rowdy moments to pop the crowd with their signature moves. This match was a good taste of the feud to leave me wanting more.

Ricochet denied. Ricochet wrestles Will Ospreay in the Continental Classic on Collision, but he had other business on Dynamite. The Hurt Syndicate interrupted his promo time. When Ric put over his recent success, MVP heard enough. Bobby Lashley manhandled Ricochet, and MVP snatched his business card from Ric’s hand to tear into pieces. Nobody likes an ass kisser. The Hurt Syndicate dismissed Ricochet from the ring.

Later backstage, Ricochet was flustered by the harassment from the Hurt Syndicate. He tried to brush it off and focus on the Continental Classic. Swerve Strickland butt into the interview. Swerve knew it was a matter of time until Ricochet showed his true self as a follower. Ric shot back that he will win the tournament, which Swerve failed to do last year. Swerve responded with another insult, however, the expression on his face showed that Ric’s barb cut deep into his ego.

At first reaction, AEW did no favors for Ricochet’s character on this evening. He got clowned twice. Being called a turd should be fighting words in the world of professional wrestling. We’ll see how this shakes out after the Continental Classic.

Toni time! Toni Storm sat with RJ City for Portrait of a Rock Star. Toni played dumb to her AEW career, including the Timeless era. She acted like it was her first day in AEW.

The slow trickle continues for Toni’s amnesia or acting. This should be an amusing side story until it’s Toni time for the eventual fight with Mariah May. It leaves me wondering what will trigger her memory back.

Notes: FTR were recuperating at home after the dastardly attack from the Death Riders. They will be cleared to compete at Fight for the Fallen on January 1. FTR will fight the Death Riders, and they won’t be coming alone.

Jamie Hayter called Julia Hart a coward for attacking from behind. At Fight for the Fallen, Hayter will serve a dish of Hayterade to Hart.

Kenny Omega is coming back soon to AEW.

Chris Jericho hype package to promote the ROH World Championship bout against Matt Cardona at Final Battle on Dec. 20. Jericho saw the sights while poetically touting his status as King of New York.

Mariah May is going to make Thunder Rosa a failure in front of her father.

Stud of the Show: Bobby Lashley

Lashley flexed his power in a such a menacing way that should put fear in whoever steps to him.

Match of the Night: Darby Allin vs. Will Ospreay

This bout had sequences I’ve never seen before.

Grade: B-

Ospreay and Allin really elevated the show. There was a lot more talking than usual to throw the program off its usual pace of action.

Share your thoughts about Dynamite. How do you rate it? What were your favorite moments from the show? Who impressed you the most?