Throughout the half-decade that All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has been in business, we have been given 260 episodes of AEW Dynamite—260 Wednesday nights of unforgettable matches and promos.
AEW ‘s evolution is evident in its average eight annual pay-per-view events. From its humble beginnings with just four events-Revolution, Double or Nothing, All Out, and Full Gear-AEW has grown to fill the gaps between these events with special edition episodes of AEW Dynamite. These episodes, aired on national television like any other, feature big matches or stipulations worthy of a pay-per-view event.
We’re approaching five years of Dynamite, and it is easy to acknowledge the high level of weekly matches. Let’s look at Dynamite’s best special edition episodes over the years.
Winter is Coming 2020
Nearing the end of 2020, AEW made the end of their first full year of shows memorable. They started the month off strong with Winter is Coming 2020.
I’ll be honest: some of the matches on this card could’ve been longer or had a better storyline, but the great ones got many people talking about this event after the fact.
Starting with the Dynamite Diamond Battle Royal. There’s nothing like a classic battle royal, but knowing the chain of events to follow makes this match so unique. MJF and Orange Cassidy won this battle royal, and it began the long run and storyline of MJF and his Dynamite Diamond ring.
Eventually, it became a significant accessory to his character when he possessed it.
Out of the entire show, what got fans talking the most was the ending of Cody Rhodes and Darby Allin vs. Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks.
Rhodes and Allin came out on top after a great match, and a brawl broke out between them, Dustin Rhodes and Brian Cage, until one man stopped them in their tracks.
The one and only, Sting, made his AEW debut at Winter is Coming 2020. It was perfectly executed, from the lights going out to the music and video accompanying it to the snow; it was chilling. It was also the beginning of a legendary run by Sting in AEW.
The main event of the night was Jon Moxley vs. Kenny Omega.
This match has been a dream match of mine for years, and they didn’t disappoint. Even though Omega and Moxley’s at Winter is Coming is their second time facing each other, it doesn’t take away from the fact that they always put on a phenomenal match together.
Fyter Fest 2021
Fyter Fest 2021 took place over two weeks on Dynamite. All of the matches on both nights turned out very well, and many more stars had more opportunities to showcase their skills in these matches.
Night one of Fyter Fest was the debut of what is now known as Darby Allin’s stipulation, a coffin match. Allin defeated Ethan Page in a vicious and creative coffin match.
Allin came out strong with a steel plate on his back and kicked off the match, hitting Page with a coffin drop. At another point in the match, Page, uses the hook from the turnbuckle to hook Allin’s necklace and pull him down. It’s simply unbelievable what these men can think of.
While night one was great, night two was even better! Chris Jericho had a great match with Shawn Spears. Even though Jericho won, this match really highlighted Spears’ talent.
The match ended with a bang as MJF introduced hardcore wrestling legend, Nick Gage, who made his appearance ahead of a future match against Jericho.
Darby Allin vs. Wheeler Yuta was a great match. I would love to see this match now since Yuta has evolved so much in the past few years as a character and in the ring. Their two wrestling styles and a good story could create history.
The night ended with a brutal Texas Death match between Lance Archer and Jon Moxley for the IWGP U.S. Heavyweight Championship. To win the match, your opponent has to be down for a ten count.
These two threw everything at each other, figuratively and literally. Garbage cans and steel chairs were thrown.
After stabbing Moxley with a fork and choke slamming him through a table with barbed wire boards on it, Archer would become the new champion.
Blood and Guts 2022
Blood and Guts is one of the most exciting special editions of Dynamite that AEW has. The final Blood and Guts match is one of the most brutal that the company has. Two rings pushed together, enclosed in a steel cage, with 12 men entering one by one every two minutes.
The match officially starts once everyone is in the ring and it doesn’t end until someone quits or gets knocked out.
I mentioned The Jericho Appreciation Society vs. The Blackpool Combat Club at Blood and Guts 2022 in a previous article, but I must talk about it again because I think it is a match that shouldn’t be forgotten.
It was nasty and vicious, and like old wrestling fashion, something happens where things don’t go as expected. In this case, the match was taken to the top of the cage.
While the Blood and Guts match was the highlight of the show, there were many other notable segments on this edition of Dynamite. Orange Cassidy and Ethan Page had a great match against each other; both are incredibly athletic and fast men.
Even though it isn’t possible now, I want to see them face one another again.
This night was also the victim of a nasty promo by Christian Cage against Jungleboy Jack Perry, where he was genuinely making his statement as a heel in the company.
He verbally attacked Jungleboy and his family and debuted the heel Luchasaurus. It was unforgettable and the beginning of a long story.
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – AEW – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world. As well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can catch AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TBS. AEW Rampage airs on TNT at 10 PM EST every Friday night. AEW Collision airs Saturday at 8pm Eastern on TNT. More AEW content available on their YouTube
