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AEW Dynamite
January 29, 2020

by Samoa Rowe

From the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio. The house looks full on camera! Our hosts are Jim Ross, Tony Shiavone, and Excalibur.

Show kicks off with Jon Moxley, eye patch and all, entering through the crowd. Moxley admits that getting stabbed in the eye means that fun and games with Jericho are over. Moxley says he isn't perfect, but he can look himself in the mirror, unlike Jericho, who he brands as a coward, liar, and bully. Moxley vows to win the championship and questions Jericho's manhood. He can't wait and calls Jericho's punk-ass out to take a beating like a man. AEW World Champion Chris Jericho answers the call on the stage (the Cleveland fans are singing his theme too, but still want to boo him). He calls Moxley stupid for not joining the Inner Circle and calls him a cracked up version of Jack Sparrow. Jericho also hit on Moxley's mother backstage. Jericho refuses to fight Moxley and invites his fellow Inner Circle cohorts to the stage. Moxley isn't afraid of a 5 on 1 situation because the Ohio fans are with him. They bring out some of Santana and Ortiz's Bronx buddies, to make it 10 on 1. Moxley headbutts Ortiz and DDT's him on the floor before leaping into the field. Referees and security swarm in and separate Moxley from the Inner Circle. Moxley DDT's a security man and stands tall in amongst the fans.

MJF video package. He and Wardlow visit The Butcher, Blade, and Bunny in a butcher shop. They hand give the Bunny their marching orders.

The Butcher and Blade (with The Bunny, MJF, and Wardlow) vs. The Young Bucks (Nick and Matt Jackson)

MJF joins commentary during the commercial and is disproportionately made about being thrown into a pool last week on the cruise. Bell rings and Matt has a hard time against the bigger Butcher. Nick tags in with a missile dropkick, and the Bucks swarm with tandem offense. Butcher catches them with a double clothesline. The Bunny's interference allows Butcher to hit NIck with a crossbody at ringside. Blade dives onto Matt, and the tables have turned just in time for a commercial. Back from break, Butcher and Blade are punishing NIck with tandem gutbusters and spinebusters. Matt gets the hot tag to a nice pop and runs wild through Blade. Young Bucks hit a draping swanton bomb on Blade, but Butcher saves the match. SUPERKICK PARTY on Butcher! Meltzer Driver on Blade finishes at 8:41! Match was alright, good to see the Young Bucks pick up a straightforward statement win, **½.
Winners: The Young Bucks

Butcher is a sore loser and puts the boots to the Young Bucks after the match. Kenny Omega runs in and kills Butcher with a V-Trigger. Hangman Page stumbles in with a cocktail and puts Blade down with a buckshot lariat. Good to see some unity from The Elite.

Nyla Rose vs. Big Swole

Swole connects with a flurry of strikes and dropkicks the knee for 2. Rose answers with a clothesline. Swole's shoulder tackle has zero effect, but she sends Rose to ringside with a leg lariat. Rose trips up Swole on the apron and slams her into the rail. CUE THE COMMERCIAL! They return from break just in time for Swole's comeback, as she applies a front chancery. Rose escapes, but Swole hits a bicycle kick to the face. Swole hits some headbutts and a leaping cutter for 2. Rose blocks a sunset flip, but Swole counters with a flatliner. Rose hits a spear and finishes with a sitout powerbomb at 8:44. Good little TV formula match, that had Swole getting over before Rose cut her off, **¼.
Winner: Nyla Rose

Kip Sabian (with Penelope Ford) vs. Cody (with Arn Anderson)

Bell rings and Sabian hits a shotgun dropkick and gutbuster. Cody answers with an uppercut off the mat. Sabian shoves Arn out of frustration. Match restarts and Cody hits a dropkick. Cody inadvertently knocks Ford over during a ringside brawl. Cody checks on her, allowing Sabian to hit a soccer kick off the apron, and Ford frolics around to reveal a ruse. COMMERCIAL! Sabian fakes a knee injury during the picture in picture part of the break. They return with both guys on the mat. Cody explodes into a clothesline and hits turnbuckle punches. Power slam by Cody, who is hulking up. Ford steals Cody's weight belt, but he hits Sabian with the Disaster Kick anyway for 2. Ford throws her shoe in the ring, to which Anderson enters to protest with the ref. Arn chest bumps the ref and gets ejected. Ford capitalizes with a head scissors takedown on Cody, setting him up for Sabian's dive. Joey Janela shows up at ringside to break up their kiss! The distraction allows Cody to hit a suicide dive! Sabian blocks Cody's springboard attempt and hits a swinging neckbreaker for 2. Cody manages a cutter and Cross Rhodes! A second and third Cross Rhodes ends it at 11:27! Fun match with Cody overcoming some bad luck, and Janela's interference did not take anything away, ***.
Winner: Cody

Tony Shiavone interviews Dr. Britt Baker on the stage. She quickly reminds him that she's a doctor and brags about trending on Twitter after she insulted him last week. Baker tells J.R. off for interrupting her promo on the cruise and for collecting a big paycheck while people like her do all the real work. Baker reminds us that she was the first woman signed to AEW and her beaming smile is on Dynamite every week, unlike Champion Riho. She diagnoses Shiavone with gingivitis and advises him to get a toothbrush. Baker's delivery is a work in progress, but I like this character shift.

The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega are interviewed in their locker room. Matt Jackson says their goal is to climb back up the tag ranks and get a shot at the Tag Team titles. Hangman Page, drinking as usual, interrupts and patronizes the Bucks a bit before wandering off. Omega reveals all four of them will be a team next week against the Butcher, Blade, and a mystery team.

SCU make their entrance in Kobe Bryant jerseys.

SCU (Scorpio Sky and Frankie Kazarian, with Christopher Daniels) vs. Hybrid 2 (Jack Evans and Angelico)

Kazarian locks up with Angelico. Kazarian hits an arm drag and works a headlock. Sky tags and hits a dropkick to the head for 2. Vertical suplex by Kazarian gets 2. Angelico rams Sky into the corner to tag Evans, who chokes with his boot. Sky counters Evans with a mule kick. SCU hit Evans with a double back elbow for 2. Kazarian folds Evans with a German suplex. Evans pushes Sky into Angelico's neck breaker and Hybrid 2 takes over. COMMERCIAL! They return from break in time for Sky to counter Evans with a suplex. Sky counters Angelico's sunset flip for the hot tag to Kazarian (to no pop, the crowd has been pretty dead). Kazarian hits a guillotine leg drop and slings Angelico over the ropes for a cutter, but Evans saves with a springboard leg drop. Hybrid 2 hit Kazarian with a double stomp/power slam combo, but Sky saves the match. Evans misses a dive and Sky drops him with a kick. The SCU-later finishes Angelico at 10:11. Decent action, but the fans did not react to anything until the final sequence, **¾.
Winners: SCU

The Dark Order appears on the jumbo-tron to play some more mind games with Christopher Daniels. Apparently, the Exalted One is not happy with the Fallen Angel and has ordered them to target his friends. This is his one warning.

Pac video package. He's ranting and raving in the dark on a brick staircase. He threatens to pluck out Moxley's good eye once he's finished with Jericho. He takes a bigger issue with the arrogant Kenny Omega and resents being put on the backburner while he plays Tag Team Champion. Pac is putting Omega onto his own timetable and is coming for blood. This was cool.

Private Party (Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen) and Darby Allin vs. The Inner Circle (AEW World Champion Chris Jericho, Santana, and Ortiz, with Jake Hager and Sammy Guevara)

Jericho slaps Darby's face, but that fires Allin up for a hot start, including a springboard arm drag, forcing Jericho to flee for a tag. Ortiz pokes the eyes of Kassidy to gain the upper hand. Kassidy's enziguri allows Private Party to hit rapid fire tandem offense. Ortiz cuts Quen off with a missile dropkick. The Inner Circle isolates Quen, at least until he back drops Ortiz into a spear on Santana. Kassidy gets a hot tag and runs wild through Ortiz. Jericho cuts Kassidy off with a springboard dropkick! Inner Circle work over Kassidy during a commercial. Back from break, the beatdown on Kassidy continues and the fans are behind him. Kassidy leaps off Ortiz' back to hit Santana with a rana. Allin gets the hot tag (to a nice pop) and catches Ortiz with a leaping stunner and a tope onto Jericho! Code Red on Santana, but Jericho breaks the cover. Match breaks down with everyone hitting drive by power moves. Allin catches Jericho in a springboard moonsault for a great nearfall. Alliin kicks Hager off the apron and follows with a Coffin Drop to outside! Quen hits a dive onto PnP, leaving Kassidy to hit Jericho with a Swanton Bomb, but JERICHO KICKS OUT! Jericho counters with the Judas Effect on Kassidy for the win at 12:20. Super fun match and I'm actually bummed that the good guys lost, ***½.
Winners: The Inner Circle

The Inner Circle aren't satisfied and dish out a 5 on 3 beatdown. Jericho whips Allin and Quen with the AEW title. Guevara plays air guitar with Darby's skateboard, which simply isn't nice, but then cracks it over Darby's ribs and throat. Jon Moxley runs in with a baseball bat and clears out the Inner Circle.

Final Thoughts: This was kind of a ho-hum edition of Dynamite, as this was more of a maintenance, middle chapter episode. I really dug the main event and post match angle, so it did end on a hot note.

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