The world is cold, better bundle up! Because winter is coming! Or as it’s called in Canada where I live, “Winter’s Been Here for Weeks, Where the Fuck Have You Been?” Eddie Kingston will look to become the second man to win the Men’s World Championship at Winter is Coming, the Continental Classic continues, and we’ll see the crowning of the first AEW Women’s Tag Team Champions! Also maybe the Dynamite Diamond Ring Battle Royale? Or is that next week?
Dynamite opens with a run-down of the card, and it turns out the diamond ring battle royale is, in fact, next week. But I did forget Swerve and Hangman teaming together for the first time!
Match One: Women’s Tag Team Championships: Tournament Finals: Timeless Love Bombs vs. Babes of Wrath
I legit have no idea who I’m pulling for. Nope, as soon as I saw Babes of Wrath come out, I realized I am 100% pulling for them.
Harley and Mina start off, lockup, Mina with an arm wrench, Harley rolls out, arm wrench, Mina rolls out, arm drag, trading attempts at a hold, stalemate, Harley with a side headlock, Mina whips her to the corner, Harley with a sort of head scissors shove, snapmare, shoving match, Mina with a spinning back kick, whip, Harley with a face buster, double tag, lockup, Willow with a side headlock, Toni whips out, Willow with a pair of tackles, trading forearms, Harley tries to grab Toni, Mina comes in and the whole thing turns into a brawl, Babes end up booting Bombs to the floor, Willow with a cannonball to both opponents, rolls Toni into the ring, punch to the back, Harley in, Willow drops her on Toni for two, toss to the corner, chop on the ropes, whip, Mina holds Toni, Toni punches Harley, backbreaker, Mina in, suplex, Toni in, front facelock, into a suplex, Mina in, Storm tosses her onto Harley for two, Mina with a rear waistlock, reversed, Harley with a back suplex, Willow in, pair of clotheslines, one for Toni, chops for both of them, Mina with a boot, double whip, Willow with a lariat to both of them, tackles Toni, tosses Mina to the corner, lariats, lariat in the middle of the ring for two, Harley in, double back suplex for two, Willow in, chops, body slam for two, snapmare, body scissors, roll, including two covers for two, finishes with a third cover for two, Harley in, snapmare from the corner, leg lariat for two, chinlock, Mina escapes with a snapmare, Willow in, chop, hip attack in the corner, lariat, whip from mid-rope, reversed into a Tornado DDT, double tag, Toni cleans house, DDT to Harley, chicken wing, blocked when Willow hits her with an elbow, Mina in, Willow with a boot, Mina fights her way out, DDT to Willow that also locks Harley in a Figure Four, then locks Harley in a better Figure Four, Harley reverses pressure, reversed again, Willow and Toni get in a leglock battle, it devolves into a brawl, ending with everyone down, Harley and Willow go for stereo superplexes, Toni gets loose and frees Mina, Mina hits Harley with a top rope Slingblade, Storm Zero, Mina covers for two as Willow breaks with a running senton, brawls with Storm to the floor, hits her with a Northern Lights, Mina and Harley trade shots, Mina hits an elbow, roundhouse kick, spinning back fist, Glorious Driver, reversed into Her Finishing Move, Willow in, Babe With The Powerbomb for three!
Winners and INAUGURAL AEW Women’s World Tag Team Champions: Babes of Wrath
FUCK YEAH!
The winners celebrate with their newly-won championships, while Toni Storm consoles Shirakawa Mina. Renee hits the ring and asks for comment, Willow says her first feeling is tired, but she’s proud of both of them. She says Harley has been the one person she’s always been able to count on this year. Harley says Willow was her opponent in her second-ever match, and it’s hard to believe that this is where they are now. They then lead the crowd in chanting Babes of Wrath, and celebrate again to a pyro display. Timeless Love Bombs pull them off the turnbuckles, but then offer their hands as all four women celebrate together. God what a moment.
Backstage, Samoa Joe says Eddie will get exactly what he wanted tonight: the real Samoa Joe. He says that man has been standing in front of him the entire time.
Backstage, Jon Moxley says his back is against the wall in the Continental Classic, but never count him out. He says the Death Riders are the hungriest wrestlers in the industry, therefore the hardest working. Garcia says you have to work for everything you have.
Match Two: Continental Classic: Gold League: Okada Kazuchika (c) (1-1) vs. Jack Perry (0-0)
Perry attacks Okada at the bell, toss to the floor, dropkick, rolls Okada into the ring, cover for two, another cover for two, ten-punch, Okada dropkicks him to the floor where Perry lands on a camera tech, Okada follows and tosses Perry over the barricade, DDT on the floor, drags him into the ring, knocks him around, neckbreaker for one, knocks him around some more, trading chops, Okada with a DDT, foot on the chest cover for two, trading forearms, Okada gets the better of it, boot, more forearms, European uppercut, whip, Perry with a clothesline, forearms, whip, reversed, Perry floats over and hits a German, DDT for two, Okada with a neckbreaker, slam, goes up top, elbow drop, Rainmaker, blocked, after a brief tussle Okada hits a dropkick, misses a Rainmaker, Perry with a forearm, poison rana, running knee for two, Snare Trap, Okada blocks by biting, Tombstone, blocked when Perry bites him in the dick, rollup for two, Snare Trap, Okada makes it to the rope, rolls to the floor, Perry rolls him into the ring, Okada with a backslide into a lariat, goes for another, misses, misses a dropkick, Perry goes for the running knee, reversed into a powerslam, Rainmaker for three.
Winner: Okada Kazuchika (6 points, 2-1)
The Don Callis Family come out to celebrate. Callis says that Perry gave Okada the toughest match he’s had in a while, and offers Perry the Bucks’ million dollars to join the Family, promising focus and direction. He demands an answer, Perry says that, for the second time tonight, he’s going to bite off more than he can chew. He starts swinging, and quickly gets overwhelmed. Luchasaurus comes out, distracting the Family long enough for the Bucks to hit the ring with chairs. The Jurassic Elite clear the ring, and the Bucks hit Okada with a BTE Trigger. Callis tries to escape with the money, Luchasaurus blocks them, the Bucks take the money, go for a double superkick, Takeshita takes the bullet, as do Rocky Romero and… I want to say Hechicero? It went by pretty quick.
Backstage, The Conglomeration are celebrating the Babes of Wrath’s title win, Mistico joins in, then the Timeless Love Bombs join in.
They show a video package detailing some of Mercedes Mone’s setbacks lately.
Renee asks Eddie Kingston about his title match tonight, saying everyone’s been waiting for it since his return. Eddie says he’s nervous, but that keeps you on your toes. He says this is the 50th anniversary of Terry Funk’s first world title win, and he wants to make Funk proud. He says you never know how many title shots you’re going to get, but he’s going to give Joe the fight of his life.
Tony Schiavone welcomes Mark Briscoe to the ring and asks him about his upcoming title defense against Daniel Garcia. Briscoe says it wasn’t that long ago that people were saying he would never be a champion, and he knows the haters are still out there, but tonight they’re in Atlanta, and he has a piece of gold. He says the doubters can kiss his ass. He says becoming a champion is one thing, but remaining is another, and that starts in Wales.
Wheeler Yuta comes out with Garcia and Shafir. He riffs on Briscoe for a bit, Garcia says he could probably do the same, but he feels bad for Briscoe, because everything about him is sad. Briscoe says he has an ass-whooping coming his way on Saturday, but tonight, the people deserve to see an ass-whooping. He dares Garcia to jump, Garcia shoves him, Briscoe with a punch, Yuta and Shafir hold Garcia back.
Backstage, the Triangle of Madness are beating people up, Kris Statlander runs in and chases them off with a chair.
Match Three: Tornado Tag Match: Shibata Katsuyori and Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland
Swerve and Hangman enter through the crowd with chains, fight off a bunch of members of the Opps Dojo, Shibata takes the staple gun from Swerve, Hobbs takes a chair to Hangman, but the good guys take control and beat their respective opponents into the concession area (albeit on opposite ends of the arena) Hangman DVDs Hobbs through a table, grabs a beer, Shibata sits Swerve down in a chair in front of onlookers, feigns a running dropkick but stops shots and just hits a boot, Hangman resumes beating down Hobbs, Swerve drops Shibata on the guard rail, then drags him down the steps, Hangman and Hobbs brawl against the guard rail on their side, Hangman tries to throw Hobbs over, Swerve tosses Shibata on the floor, sits him in a chair, forearms, running leg lariat, tosses Shibata over the barricade, Hangman beats down Hobbs in the stands, Swerve sets up a table against the announce table, Hangman tosses Hobbs over the barricade into the ringside area, Shibata boots Swerve over the barricade, Hangman and Hobbs in the ring, the bell rings, Hangman goes for a chair shot, the ref pulls it out of his hands, the Opps beat Hangman down, keep beating him down for a really long time, Prince Nana tries to interject, Hobbs menaces Nana, Swerve boots Hobbs, Hangman and Swerve hit stereo suicide dives, beat down their opponents in the ring, Hangman with a Cactus Clothesline to Hobbs, Shibata and Swerve trade strikes, Swerve with a top rope spinning elbow, calls for the House Call, Hobbs pulls Swerve to the floor, Hangman boots Shibata from the apron, Buckshot, blocked, Shibata with a low blow, goes for a cross arm breaker, Swerve tosses Hobbs into the steps, blocks Shibata’s still-ongoing submission attempt with a Swerve Stomp, everyone trades shots, Hobbs goes for a tackle and accidentally hits Shibata, Swerve and Hangman with dual spinning elbows to Hobbs, Swerve hits Shibata with a 450, Hangman with an elbow to Hobbs, Swerve follows it up with a rolling STO, Swerve and Hangman give each other an intense stare, Hobbs challenges them from the apron, they slide to the floor and powerbomb him through the table from earlier, Hangman hits Shibata with a Buckshot Lariat, Swerve with the House Call for three.
Winners: Swerve Strickland and Hangman Page
Josh Alexander looks on from backstage.
Elsewhere backstage, Don Callis threatens to sue the Bucks for the million dollars, but says he’d rather do it in the ring. He challenges them to find a third to meet the family in trios action for all the money.
After a commercial, Stokely says the world’s most dangerous narcotic is the camera, because it causes delusions of greatness and an addiction to TV time. He says the Bang Bang Gang will get what they’ve been looking for next week, but it won’t work out how they think.
Match Four: Continental Classic: Gold League: Kyle Fletcher (2-0) vs. “Speedball” Mike Bailey (0-1)
Lockup, stalemate, staredown, jockeying, Bailey with a rollup for two, Fletcher bails to the floor, slowly gets into the ring, boot, elbow to the back, stomp, leaping stomp, whip, Bailey floats over, goes up top, hurricanrana, Fletcher lands on the floor, Bailey slides through the ropes and hits another hurricanrana, both wrestlers back into the ring, Bailey up top, crossbody, caught, Fletcher with a backbreaker into a slam, mounted punches, body slam, blocked, Bailey with a boot from the corner, missile dropkick, spin kick to the gut, kick to the back, kick to the chest, misses a running shooting star press, Fletcher goes for a brainbuster, blocked with a knee, Fletcher charges and lands on the floor, Speedball with a springboard corkscrew, rolls Fletcher into the ring, Fletcher to the outside, Bailey follows, Fletcher with a boot, suplex, blocked, Bailey with an elbow, sets Fletcher on the barricade, punches, follows on the barricade, goes for a moonsault, Fletcher grabs the ankle, body slam onto the barricade, both wrestlers into the ring, Fletcher with a punt to the gut for two, tosses Bailey to the floor, sets up the steps off to the side a bit, brainbuster on the steps, blocked, Speedball leaps off the steps, Fletcher catches them, Bailey reverses into a poison rana, both wrestlers up on the apron, trading forearms, Bailey knocks Fletcher down, moonsault knees, Helluva Kick, sets Fletcher up top, Fletcher with punches, Bailey with a swing kick, super hurricanrana, goes up top, shooting star press, blocked with boots, Fletcher with Snake Eyes, Last Ride for two, goes to pull Bailey up, collapses instead, stomps, collapses again, trading chops, Fletcher goes for a kick, Bailey blocks, trading kick attempts, Fletcher hits one, half and half, crossbody, reversed into a moonsault slam, jockeying, Bailey hits a hurricanrana for two, PK, moonsault knees, roundhouse kick to the head for two, Time Adventure for two, spin kick, blocked with a superkick, Bailey hits a superkick, then another, spin kick in the corner, goes up top, Ultimate Weapon for two, Fletcher rolls to the floor, Bailey misses Ultimate Weapon on the floor, Fletcher with a Buckle Bomb, running kick in the corner, brainbuster for two, sets Bailey up top, Bailey reverses into a sunset flip for two, misses a few kicks, Fletcher with a lariat, brainbuster, blocked, Bailey with a rollup for three!
Winner: “Speedball” Mike Bailey
With one minute left in the time limit. My god, that was amazing.
Backstage, Renee asks Hangman what’s next. He says the Men’s World Championship. He says he has tonight’s winner at World’s End.
The Bucks ask Luchasaurus to be their partner for all the money. He shakes his head and points them to Kenny Omega’s dressing room. The Bucks ask Kenny to reunite one more time. Kenny says he doesn’t want the money, but he’ll do it for free just to hurt Don Callis.
Main Event: AEW Men’s World Championship: Samoa Joe (c) vs. Eddie Kingston
Lockup, mutual face washes, Eddie forces Joe into the corner, break, lockup, Eddie with a side headlock, Joe whips his way out, Hook grabs Eddie’s leg, the ref ejects him, lockup, Eddie with a side headlock, Joe tries to whip out, Eddie just takes him to the mat, Joe eventually back suplexes his way out, punches, strikes in the corner, Eddie tosses his way out, chops in the corner, chops in the adjacent corner, Joe with a chop, trading chops, Eddie stumbles, they resume trading chops, Joe with forearms, Eddie with a chop, more chops, forearms in the corner, chop, forearm, Joe with an elbow, punch, Eddie with gut punches, kicks, Joe with a punch, kicks trading forearms, trading slaps, Joe with a kick, Eddie with a clothesline, avalanche, reverses into an uranage, tackle in the corner, elbow, boot wash, stomps in the corner, trading forearms, Eddie with a pair of chops, lariat, another, goes for a third, reversed into a powerslam for two, knees, Eddie with chops, Joe with knees, Eddie with chops, Joe with toe kicks, charges, Eddie with an exploder suplex for two, Joe locks in an STF, Eddie escapes by biting, hits a DDT, Joe tumbles to the floor, Eddie follows and brings him back in, Joe with a boot, Eddie with a toss, uraken, reversed into the Coquina Clutch, Eddie slowly fades and taps.
Winner and STILL AEW Men’s World Champion: Samoa Joe
Joe walks off without much fanfare, Eddie tries to recover in the ring as Dynamite goes off the air.
Continental Classic Standings:
Gold League:
Kyle Fletcher: 6 Points (2-1)
Okada Kazuchika: 6 Points (2-1)
PAC: 3 Points (1-1)
Kevin Knight: 3 Points (1-1)
“Speedball” Mike Bailey: 3 Points (1-1)
Jack Perry (Replacing Darby Allin): 0 Points (0-1)
Blue League:
Konosuke Takeshita: 6 Points (2-0)
Claudio Castagnoli: 6 Points (2-1)
Orange Cassidy: 3 Points (1-1)
Mascara Dorada: 3 Points (1-1)
Jon Moxley: 3 Points (1-2)
Roderick Strong: 0 Points (0-2)