The SmarK Rant for AEW Dynamite – 06.10.26

The SmarK Rant for AEW Dynamite – 06.10.26

“Summer Blockbuster”

Live from Cincinnati, OH, home of WKRP.

Your hosts are Excalibur, Tony Schiavone & Taz

Tomasso Ciampa joins us to start, and he’s still holding a grudge against Tony for saying Jericho was better on Collision. So Tony corrects his assessment under duress, but Jericho interrupts and he wants to fight someone who has hair for once. So we get some wacky comedy from Jericho as he calls Ciampa “Tommy”, but then gets serious with the threats and they get into a pullapart brawl to the back.

Meanwhile, Kevin Knight shows up with new friend Don Callis in his quest for the World title, but Andrade also wants that and he’s growing more annoyed at not getting a shot.

Continental title: Jon Moxley v. Shane Taylor

I think Jon’s Uber needs to drop him off closer to the arena next time. I’m not sure who Taylor beat to earn a title shot given he’s never on Dynamite but the match should be good. Jon goes for the arm to start and they slug it out, with Mox the clear babyface tonight. Mox sends him to the floor and hits him with a dive, but Taylor tosses him into the timekeeper pit and then slams him through the table as we take a break. Back with Shane hitting a corner clothesline, but Moxley fights back with chops and a lariat. They fight to the top rope and Taylor sends him down and hits a splash for two. Taylor with a clothesline for two and he goes to a chinlock, but Moxley powers out of it and Shane slugs him down again. Mox with a cutter for two off a slugfest. Mox with the armbar, but Shane puts him down with a knee strike. Mox curb stomps him and finishes with the bulldog choke at 13:10, however. I dunno, it was fine but I didn’t buy Taylor as a serious challenger here and it didn’t feel like the crowd did either. **1/2. Afterwards, Shane Taylor Promotions hits the ring for a beatdown, but it turns into a brawl with the Death Riders, and it’s the Riders who end up laid out this time. That’s a pleasant change of pace.

Meanwhile, we’re reintroduced to Mercedes Mone.

Kevin Knight joins us, and I still think they went to the Callis Family play way too early. Really they need a better selection of managers to choose from. He tells MJF to come out and face it, but Darby Allin returns and lays him out with his skateboard, prompting the Callis Family to chase him out of the building.

Pac v. Mark Briscoe

Mark makes a deal of some kind with Tony Khan at the gorilla position. They trade wristlocks to start and Briscoe wins that battle to the surprise of Pac. Briscoe with chops, but Pac boots him to the floor and Mark recovers with a Cactus elbow off the apron. But then Pac drops him with a suplex onto an open chair and we take a break. Back with them slugging it out and Briscoe comes back with a corner clothesline into an exploder. Iconoclasm gets two. Pac hits him with kicks and Briscoe absorbs it, so Pac puts him down with a german suplex. They fight for another suplex by the apron and both guys bump to the floor off that, allowing Mark to hit a blockbuster off the apron and back in for two. The froggy bow misses and Pac goes up as well, but Briscoe evades that, so Pac suplexes him into the corner and tries a shooting star press. Mark gets the knees up, however, and hits the Jay Driller to finish at 12:13. Man this crowd is just sucking the life out of these matches tonight. ***1/4. Afterwards, Mark calls out MJF to clarify the deal with TK and we take another break. Back with MJF noting that he’s the final word on all things in AEW and the answer is still NO. Also friends are stupid and nothing but a liability. But in this case he’s got business partners, which turns out to be Jay Lethal and the Swirl, and they attack Jay and then get into a brawl with the Conglomeration. Look I appreciate all the effort to make me care about watching Collision but it’s not gonna happen. Anyway, the announcement is that Tony Khan has granted Briscoe a 6-on-6 cage match with MJF at Forbidden Door and if Mark’s team wins, he gets a title shot.

Andrade el Idolo v. Orange Cassidy

We have a battle for the pockets to start and Andrade finally takes off his pants in frustration, at which point Orange takes off HIS pants and reveals another pair of jogger jeans underneath. OK that was amazing. Ornage hits him with a rana and dropkicks him to the floor. Back in, Callis encourages Andrade to “stomp his nuts”, but Orange runs him into the corner to prevent that. But then he misses a charge and lands on the floor as we take a break. Back with Andrade beating on him in the corner, but Orange comes off the top with a clothesline. Andrade tries the Three Amigos, but Orange counters with a stunner, so Andrade takes him to the floor and hits the third suplex out there. We stop for a selfie with Andrade, but then Lio Rush shows up and wants a selfie with a very reluctant Orange. Back in the ring, Orange goes up and Andrade knocks him down, but makes the mistake of pointing to his head to indicate intelligence. Running knes in the corner only gets two. Orange reverses a rana for two and it’s a double down. Orange fights back and sends Andrade to the ramp for a diving DDT out there, and then back in for another diving DDT that gets two. But Andrade blocks the Orange Punch with the elbow and finishes with the DM at 15:53. Another good match ruined by this dead crowd. ***

Meanwhile, Will Ospreay is one step closer to advancing to winning the World title at All In, on what will be my 31^st birthday! What a present for me!

Meanwhile, the Death Riders challenge Shane Taylor to a street fight on Collision.

Owen Hart tournament quarterfinals: Skye Blue v. Maya World

This women’s tournament has been cursed. Maya gets a leg lariat, but Skye puts her down with a clothesline and slugs away with elbows and then chokes her out in the corner. Maya blocks a charge in the corner and they head to the ramp, where Skye gets a neckbreaker and we take a break. Back with Maya making a comeback with a double stomp and a german suplex for two. Maya goes up and Skye brings her down with a powerbomb for two. Maya with a bridging suplex for two and a running knee gets two. They slug it out and Maya gets a german suplex, but Skye hits a knee strike for a double down. Maya with a pair of rollups, but Skye superkicks her and follows with a TKO for two. Code Blue is reversed into a cradle and Maya gets the very unlikely upset win at 11:00 to advance to meet Athena. I guess she got the win because her brother died and it’s a very nice gesture but she wasn’t particularly impressive here. **1/2

Meanwhile, Zach Sabre Jr. challenges Kenny Omega for Forbidden Door

Meanwhile, the Don Callis Family has their promo interrupted by MJF, who is seeking partners for his match at Forbidden Door. And he’s got a briefcase full of money, so Kevin Knight volunteers in exchange for a title match after the PPV. And Andrade is still feeling offended and left out.

Owen Hart tournament semi-final: Swerve Strickland v. Brody King

They slug it out to start and battle to the ramp, where Brody runs him into the post and follows with a cannonball off the ramp. But then Nana allows Swerve to hit a stomp off the apron and onto a chair, and we take a break. Back with them fighting on the top rope, but Brody pulls off a turnbuckle to block a powerbomb. So Swerve brings him down with a legsweep instead, but misses a House call kick and then recovers with a Swerve stomp for two. Brody bails to the floor and catches him with a slam onto the announce desk as the crowd is just deathly quiet, and back in that gets two. They slug it out and Brody hits him with a Saito suplex and lariat for two. Brody with a sleeper, but Swerve runs him into the exposed turnbuckle to bust him open and follows with a House Call kick. Top rope House Call kick gets two. Brody fights back with a death valley driver into the corner, but he goes after Nana and then cannonballs Swerve and piledrivers him for two. He tries the Ganzo bomb, but Nana hits him from the floor and Swerve finishes with the Vertebreaker and advances to the finals at 15:00. Clearly the best match of the night but the crowd was still dead for most of it. ***1/2

So this was definitely a “slowly moving the chains” episode that would have been really good if not for a terrible atmosphere and a weird fixation on hyping up storylines from Collision and building matches for the next Collision. I’m not saying they should just give up on that show, but there was way too much on this one that required homework to follow. Just an OK episode.