Break down the super-sized celebration episode with us here!
The 6th Anniversary special of AEW Dynamite (Oct. 1, 2025) had plenty of surprises and badass matches. There was one man who stood out above the rest. That man is one that gets the crowds frothing at the mouth. That man is coming for the AEW World Championship. That man is Samoa Joe.
Samoa Joe rules
When firing up this week’s episode of Dynamite, I did not expect to see Samoa Joe challenging Hangman Page for the AEW World Championship at WrestleDream. The story is a bit flimsy, however, Joe’s aura makes it feel like a big deal.
Everything started cool as Hangman Page, Samoa Joe, & Will Hobbs battled Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, & Daniel Garcia in trios action. The atmosphere was ornery and hard-hitting. Hangman found his window of opportunity to strike with the Buckshot Lariat on Claudio for the win.
All’s well in babyface land, right? Wrong.
Joe got a thorn in his britches about perceived disrespect. He claimed that Hangman stole the hot tag from him down the stretch. Tensions really boiled when Hangman handed over Joe’s trios title. Joe wasn’t prepared to receive, and the belt dropped down to the mat. Joe snapped with anger. Like I said, this story is flimsy.
Leave it to Joe to turn fool’s gold into gold. He fired up with spicy attitude toward Hangman. Joe shouted that Hangman has never beaten him. This might not sound hot on paper. The appeal of this chirping was all in the delivery though. It’s better to watch the clip.
Backstage, Hangman didn’t back down. He isn’t scared to defend the world title against Joe at the PPV.
Joe responded with aggression. It is time to remind Hangman who Joe is. He delivered quality trash talk, “And on any day that you have ever existed, you have never been greater than me.”
Samoa Joe rules. This story is weak, and I don’t particularly like the turn in attitude here over imaginary disrespect. However, Joe makes it work in the sense of building a fight I want to see. That’s why Samoa Joe rules.
Let’s jam through the rest of Dynamite from Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood, FL. Catch up on all the details with excellent play-by-play from Claire Elizabeth.
Broke Bucks. Nick Jackson gambled away the last of their $500,000 winnings. Instead of being able to pay for a flashy entrance, the Young Bucks had no money left. Their name graphic stated Broke Bucks. Funny way to start the show.
Brodido & Kenny Omega defeated Young Bucks & Josh Alexander. Action-comedy style to bring the chuckles early with Macarena dancing and Bandido muscling up to body slam Brody King onto their opponent.
This match was given plenty of time to deliver thrills. I thought Kenny Omega could have shown an extra gear of intensity when considering this was his comeback match after being ‘injured’ by the Callis Family. Omega wrestled like it was an ordinary match. Granted, Kyle Fletcher wasn’t involved, and he was the man who delivered the stretcher blow.
The match closed with a furious pace to finish with satisfaction. Omega absolutely destroyed Alexander. This was the fire I would have liked to see earlier from him when he was yucking it up with the boys. Omega styled for a knee to the back, poison rana, powerbomb, and V-Trigger on Alexander. Bandido stepped in for a 21 Plex, then Omega finished with the One Winged Angel to win. That was a brutal train of pain.
Return of Jurassic Express. After Omega’s match, he remained in the ring eying the Bucks. Tension was thick. The Bucks played into being conflicted about their past misdeeds toward their friend. Before they could delve into that, Alexander attacked Omega. The Bucks didn’t join in, but they also didn’t stop the Walking Weapon. That’s when Jack Perry and Luchasaurus arrived for the save.
Omega was ornery toward Perry for his past evil doings. Jurassic Express let him vent aggressively without retaliating. They were more focused on getting at the Young Bucks. Those tag teams fought to the back.
Interesting drama in overlapping relationships. It’s funny how Jurassic Express were in no hurry to help Omega from Alexander, then Perry wanted credit for the save anyway. It’s also funny how Omega wasn’t buying the change in heart from Perry. AEW does a good job of not pretending the audience has amnesia when flipping from heel to babyface. Character alignments should be intriguing as the feuds develop. There is a lot to explore in the coming weeks.
Andrade returns! Omega was still in the ring to cut a happy promo for the fans on the anniversary. Lights out. A masked man appeared from behind to pummel Omega. The reveal was Andrade. Don Callis shook hands with his newest acquisition. Surprise factor was pretty good. I was not expecting to see Andrade so soon, and I sure wasn’t expecting him to target Omega.
TNT Championship: Kyle Fletcher (c) defeated Orange Cassidy to retain the title. Cassidy did Cassidy stuff to much delight of the fans. I found delight in how Fletcher answered with aggression. One thing that puts a smile on my face is putting a pounding on Cassidy. That made me happy.
On the flip side for Cassidy supporters, Fletcher did well as the big bad villain to root against and build for the plucky comeback by Cassidy. The finish rolls into the next section.
El Clon joins Callis Family. Hologram ran in at the end of the TNT title match to influence the result. The luchador shoved Cassidy off the corner, and that helped Fletcher set up the brainbuster on the buckles to win.
Hologram disrobed to reveal it was El Clon all along. Don Callis embraced another new member to the family. His crew came out on stage like an Ocean’s 11 cast.
Fletcher and Cassidy had a good match, and Cassidy gets protected on the finish. It’s too bad that Hologram is injured. I’m glad to see that AEW didn’t shelve El Clon in the meantime. Andrade and Clon in the Callis Family is silly in the running gag of their numbers. I think both will benefit with Callis on the mic.
Toni Storm defeated Tay Melo. Solid match with rugged attitude. Storm surged for a running hip attack and the Storm Zero piledriver to win.
Timeless calls out the world champ. Storm wondered who she was without the women’s title. She is not finished with Kris Statlander. Storm needs to know who is better one-on-one.
Speaking of champions, Mercedes Moné will defend the TBS Championship in an open challenge next week for Title Tuesday. The CEO also has eyes on the women’s tag belts. Who will be her partner? Enter Harley Cameron with the mini Moné puppet. Yes! Mercedes was having none of that loser. I put this promo in the flow for continuity with the next entry.
Statlander is a fighting champion, so she accepted Storm’s request for WrestleDream. Harley entered for the hype job. She also hid her puppet in case she teams with Statlander instead of Mercedes.
Nice mix of humor and hutzpah in these promos. I’m easily sold on the women’s title bout. It’s smart to point out that Statlander and Storm never wrestled one-on-one to give a hook.
GOA defeated Swirl. Blake Christian and Lee Johnson had momentum using speed and high flying, then Bishop Kaun and Toa Liona snatched the win with power. GOA obliterated Swirl in the end to finish with a double slam. Business picked up when MVP issued a challenge. He apologized to his partners for being pinned in the trios match. MVP acknowledged losing a step in wrestling at his age, however, he hasn’t lost a step when it comes to a fight. The Hurt Syndicate challenged the Demand to a street fight next week. Ricochet didn’t hesitate to accept.
Nice win for GOA to keep them fresh in the win column after losing to Brodido last week. I like MVP’s approach to the rematch. He can still hang with these whippersnappers, but he also accepts father time is not on his side. Turning to a street fight evens the field a little, in that regard. I also like how Ricochet didn’t back down. That adds some bravado to his team’s reputation.
Darby Allin & Kris Statlander defeated Wheeler Yuta & Marina Shafir. Mixed tornado tag rules for the main event, so it was basically hardcore no disqualification. This match was wild entertainment. There were suplexes on tables, piles of chairs, and tacks. The finish was electric. Yuta accidentally threw white powder in Shafir’s eyes. She couldn’t see and snatched Yuta’s neck for a choke on the mat. Statlander landed a 450 splash on the pile. Allin followed for a Coffin Drop on Yuta. Double cover by the babyfaces on Yuta to win.
Angles spun off afterward. Storm arrived in stage for a staredown. Statlander and Storm smiled, then they threw fisticuffs. The Death Riders punished Allin. PAC did the dirty work. Moxley opined that he doesn’t know how Allin will quit at WrestleDream, but it will happen.
Very entertaining main event. I like seeing fresh faces get the chance to shine in the main event. Allin has his spot locked down. Statlander is the new women’s champ, so this was a strong showing of toughness. Yuta did his job well being worthy of a beating. Shafir stepped up in what was a big stage for her in AEW. She brought the right level of aggression for the match. Overall, the action was bonkers.
Notes: AEW Dynamite 6th Anniversary highlight package of great moments over the years.
Mark Briscoe showed MJF that words have consequences. In terms of winning titles, Dat Boy isn’t selfish. He can celebrate when friends succeed, such as Cassidy possibly winning the TNT title.
Kevin Knight challenged FTR to a singles match. Willow Nightingale will repay the favor to watch JetSpeed’s back. FTR accepted the challenge, but they won’t reveal Knight’s opponent until Collision. Stokely Hathaway has a surprise in store for Willow.
Sammy Guevara has beef with Eddie Kingston, so LFI partner Dralistico will wrestle the Mad King on Collision.
Don Callis wants Okada and Takeshita to join forces for the tag titles next week. Takeshita was not on board with that idea.
Stud of the Show: Samoa Joe
Joe created an instant big fight feel for the PPV.
Match of the Night: Hangman Page, Samoa Joe, & Will Hobbs vs. Death Riders
Several good choices on the evening. In my view, this trios match rose above the rest due to intensity of the wrestling.
Grade: B+
Quality wrestling as always. The standout aspect was structure in weaving scenes to set up future directions.
Share your thoughts about Dynamite. How do you rate it? What were your favorite moments from the show? Who impressed you the most?
Category: General Sports
