"An enjoyable show to watch. Although you won't remember anything after a few weeks. For me, a standard 7. The TBS celebration was great. Okay, I'll probably remember that one."

[7.0] "A solid show overall. It was nice to see Shelton Benjamin in singles action now that Lashley is sidelined with an injury. I particularly enjoyed the six man tag team match. I'm still waiting for Marina Shafir to put together a consistenly solid performance"

[7.0] "This was a solid episode that did a great job laying the groundwork for Maximum Carnage and making the upcoming storyline feel important. The pacing throughout the show felt deliberate in a good way, with each segment contributing something toward the bigger picture instead of just filling time. I especially enjoyed the Six-Man Tag Team Match, which delivered both in-ring action and story progression. The chemistry between the teams was strong, the transitions were smooth, and the match structure kept the crowd engaged from start to finish. It didn't feel like a throwaway multi-man match; instead, it actually moved several rivalries forward and raised the stakes for what's coming next. Andrade's return was a real highlight and added a lot of much-needed drama to the episode. His presence immediately injected a sense of unpredictability and tension, particularly with the looming Kenny Omega match. The way they presented him made the upcoming clash feel bigger and more personal, and it gave the show a clear hook for future episodes. Overall, this was a very solid episode that balanced action, story, and anticipation for what's ahead. It wasn't perfect, but it definitely accomplished its goal of building toward Maximum Carnage while keeping me invested in the characters and their rivalries."

[4.0] "A mostly watchable episode but I didn't like the opener, Storm vs Shafir, or the first half of the main event. Everything else was just fine and not much more. What's the most interesting story in AEW right now? Couldn't tell you. Feels like we're waiting for the return of Ospreay or maybe even Jericho, especially with the lights shutting off several times this episode."

[6.0] "It was fine. Fun show. Didn't care for the main being "unsanctioned"; strongest matches were in the first hour. MJF segment was good. If he's gonna be an obnoxious asshole and hold the world title he better be getting his ass whooped during these town halls. Jake Something and Andrade return is cool, Willow town hall was funny. I'm chill with Toni/Marina being a DQ finish; it's a TV match and I'd rather that end up on Maximum Carnage or something. Toni was about to pin Marina anyway."

[6.0] "This episode started a lot stronger than it ended. Like that the opener had a clean finish. The six man tag was a lot of fun. Rest was pretty meh. Main event was disappointing."

[8.0] "Excellent win for Mox in the opener, followed by a really good trios match featuring the Bucks, Jack and The Demand. Push Bandido to the moon! Nice win over Sammy Guevara. Toni wins, even if by DQ, and a good main event between Hanger & Swerve against Hobbs & Hook."

[8.0] "Good show overall, liked the segments with Willow and MJF, and Darby fighting to tie up his last loose end with the Death Riders is a nice story. Liked most of the matches quite well, wasn't so high on the trios match but that's more of a personal taste thing. The first and last matches were my favorites."

[3.0] "A really poor Dynamite to kick off the year. The wrestling here was several levels below what im used to from this show with the best match here being like a 6/10 at best. Not many stories are doing too much for me either. I enjoyed the Willow segment here and the MJF promo was surprisingly tolerable but i cant say that there's s story on this show that im invested in at the moment. I hope some fresh feuds are established soon because im getting pretty sick of seeing the same people feuding each week. Like why is Darby still feuding with the Death Riders? Why are the Elite and the Callis family still fighting? Is there really nothing else for Hangman to do but fight the Opps every week? I swear these people have been locked in the same feuds since Wrestledream and in the case of Darby, even longer. Things need to change soon, because very little is connecting with me right now. A very bad show overall, not a great start to the year for AEW especially after what was a strong 2025 for them. MOTN - Jack Perry & The Young Bucks vs. The Demand"

[5.0] "The matches for this weeks Dynamite aren't worth going out of your way to see for me Benjamin vs Moxley was good 6/10, but was way too long for me to go any higher. 6 man tag match was great and the best match of the show. Bandido vs Guevara; Bandido shouldn't go 50/50 when he has a title match next week, especially against Sammy who has been regulated to ROH and really never on Dynamite. Storm vs Shafir was bad as was the Nightingale/Mone segment. The main event didn't need to be a lights out match when the feud between The Opps/Page-Strickland feud hasn't reached that point Hook just doesn't do it for me too. Not a bad show just average/alright/okay show for me."

[6.0] "An enjoyable show, but it lacked at least one big match, especially in the main event. Two good matches to start, followed by three decent ones, but these were sometimes insufficient. The episode also contained some nice little segments (JetSpeed's injury and replacement by the Bucks, Allin & PAC, Andrade's second return). The two longest segments could have been better, however. MJF was somewhat funny but too predictable, and the cream pie bit during the Willow/CEO segment didn't convince me. In-ring quality: 2.75/5. Angles and out-of-match segments: 1/3. Bonus/penalty: none. Total: 5.75/10. Show watched on Triller TV."

"[6.5] so, did i have a decent time overall? yes. am i ready for tony khan to lock in and get some plot going with the women's division? ALSO YES. toni storm getting revenge on marina shafir for beating on her woman? ruined by a bunch of unnecessary men...i need them to cool it with the orange cassidy/toni/mina business. fun segment for willow (and mercedes), and i DO believe we WILL be getting her fighting twice in one night to defend both titles. i had fun with the lights out match, but i'm sick of the opps dojo (and i'm sure samoa joe is too; they're all pretty uneffective...). bandido is always fun to watch, and i would LOVE for him to get the title off mjf, but i know they won't. you know, all in all, tonight felt like we were all just here to have a good time, and not to Do anything that actually Mattered."

[8.0] "This was the first AEW show I've ever seen, and in my opinion, it blows the Stranger Things RAW or the first SmackDown of the year out of the water. All the matches were entertaining, the wrestlers were dynamic, Bandido was a machine, Hangman and Swerve were monsters. I'd never seen the Young Bucks wrestle before, and they blew me away. Jack Perry was great, and Jon Moxley, well, he's always been good. Shelton Benjamin did his job well. The only bad thing about the show was the Toni vs. Marina match, but even though it was bad, it didn't detract from what was, in my opinion, a great show."

[8.0] "It's a testament to Dynamite that even the "weaker" episodes are still this good. Like the matches themselves, the show lacked that certain je ne sais quoi that prevents it from going over a certain score, but it was still done well enough that prevents it from going below. A story of high 7s and low 8s -- except for the women's match, what was that mess? -- across the board, makes for a pretty enjoyable show once again."

[6.0] "This felt like a very average episode of Dynamite to me and rather flat in a lot of places. I enjoyed the six man and the opener and main both were solid but didn't quite hit like I would have hoped. Highlight: MJF and Bandido promo entertained me Best match: Young Bucks & Jack Perry v The Demand: ***1/2 Other Notable Moments: Jon Moxley beat Shelby B in a decent opener (***1/4), Bandido beats Guevara (***) and is confronted by MJF and Swerve and Hangman Page beat Hook and Hobbs in a slow to get going but fun by the end lights out match that probably didn't justify the stipulation (***1/4)."

[1.0] "One of the worst dynamites ever that I can remember watching. It felt like everything was designed to piss me off. Mox vs Shelton was so disappointing. The 6 man tag match was fun, and Andrade now actually being back is cool, that is probably the only good thing here. The Willow segment was fine, until Mercedes came out and we got mid 2010s WWE shit with the cake. Bandido vs Sammy is the worst match of this new year, and the MJF promo afterwards was not good either, despite Bandido being incredible in both of those things. The women's match was nothing, had a nothing finish, and post match segment that also did nothing. Main event was fine, don't like that hook is still getting in these spots."

[7.0] "Good episode of dynamite, Andrade Returning & Jake Something Debut being the highlights of the show. The Bucks going back to their old self was great as well."

[7.0] "A weaker Dynamite than usual, but still pretty fun, it's normal to have some basic weeklys sometimes, but some things could have been better, like the execution of the Toni Storm/Marina Shafir/Mina Shirakawa again, it should be a much bigger feud but the story is decent. That main event lights out didn't clicked for me, Hook is not there yet and the Opps Dojo stuff sucks. Now for the good parts, Mox vs Shelton was very good, I love when they do the finish close to the time limit draw, like they did not long ago in the C2 with Mox vs Takeshita and Fletcher vs Speedball, now the draws are much more unpredictable and feels more like a "normal" finish, like Claudio vs Takeshita also in the C2. Superkick Party Young Bucks are back and of course they once again delivered in a signature AEW trios banger. Jake Something/Doyle is a great acquisition, but come on, the Don Callis Family needs to be nerfed very soon, of course with Konosuke Takeshita turning face, but also like maybe Trent and Rocky Romero joining the Conglomeration, Lance Archer should be out too. I don't like Sammy Guevara but he did very good once again with Bandido and the promo with MJF was fun. No PPV until march so I hope Maximum Carnage, Grand Slam Australia and other weekly shows will be great in the following weeks."

"[4/10] A quintessential episode proving why, in American professional wrestling, the industry may benefit from making January a vacation month for the workers. In-ring ranged from minimally acceptable (Guevara vs Bandido), to just okay (Shelton vs. Moxley, Main Event [worst Unsanctioned-type match I've seen in a long time]) to pretty outright bad (Storm vs. Shafir), with no results of any kind of larger, cohesive story-line arc-correlated matter to be spoken of. I didn't watch the Young Bucks match. The lighting issue was inconsequential."

"7 - Some surprise high points with Bandido and Sammy, as well as the Bucks replacing JetSpeed for the tag match. However, the main event was severely underwhelming, the Storm Shafir match was bland, and the Moxley Benjamin Continental Classic match was incredibly generic. All in all, a steady Dynamite show."

[7.0] "This week's show delivers some solid in-ring work, even if it's hampered by some horrendous lighting. It's always a treat to hear JR back calling a full program, and his commentary adds that classic mix of humour, insight, and incredulity; but he's noticeably older and a bit grumpier than usual, sounding like he's genuinely fed up by the end. The matches themselves mostly hit the right beats, but the production choices, especially the inconsistent lighting, undermine some of the visual impact, making certain spots hard to follow. Still, the combination of strong wrestling and JR's voice keeps the show watchable and, at times, genuinely entertaining."

"I definitely agree with Ozwern. The show really had no direction at all. The only things that seemed right was the TBS Championship Celebration. Marina mocking Toni Storm threw out the match was despicable. The Yong Bucks seemed to be the same storyline before they took time off, only Jack Perry is added to the mix. Bandido & Sammy Guevara was good and the end of the match was a good opportunity to hype MJF/Bandido at Maximum Carnage. The Opps/Swerve/AdamPage seems to keep going. We need to move away from storylines that should have ended at World's End. The only storyline arc that made sense was when they were writing off Luchasauras, after that there was no need for the beatdown early backstage. New Years Smash was the best thing to end the year and new stuff should have been done not Marina/stom. There is way too many members foe the Don Callis Family, this is feeling like the NWO stoyrline in the old wcw. I think that's why nobody cares about this and that's why Kenny Omega has moved on. Overall this show was like climbing a mountain, up down up down up down. I was changing the channel repeatedly, I turned it off when it was going too long, these overlaps are so WCW. WWE TNA & NXT have more truer storylines. Collision better live up to to its hype on Staurday otherwise AEW is going downhill befeore the next ppv in march and I don't think a lot of people are gonna care. There are no big name stars that tony khan could bring in to salvage the revolution ppv in March."

"This was a more laid back Dynamite, far lesser stakes than in previous ones. I think it had more silly moments as a result. The first two matches were technically well done. The Andrade return it was nice to see him again. Babes of Wrath + Kris Statlander promo was good, but seemed a little odd that they would all bully ceo. Maybe a double turn is in future? Ceo's outfit was great. However after taking the powerbomb from Willow, ceo did remain on the ring mat for a long time. The Bandido vs Sammy match, this was fine but there was a lot of padding with Sammy's showboating around. Death Riders has strange dynamic going on where their leader Mox is babyface but they are clearly heels as evidenced by their interference in the Toni Storm match. The ongoing Toni Storm-Mina Shirakawa-OC interaction has been interesting. The final match I liked it but overall feeling here was things are more laid back. Opps Dojo suddenly swarmed in I thought it was a Nexus type group at first. One criticism is sometimes the people on receiving end of moves were telegraphing what was going to occur, like MJF bending over in the ring for what seemed like forever before taking the move from Bandido. JR as announcer was nice though."

[7.0] "A decent episode but no world beater. The first hour was excellent but the end of the show had lost some momentum. I enjoyed the episode and lost to enjoy."

[8.0] "Ordinarily, I would have given this a 7, BUT we got the return of the tassel-laden, Superkick Party Young Bucks, so that's good for an extra whole point. I do wish AEW would think a bit more strategically about when to schedule locations and matches. Rather that means just paying more attention to detail or planning things further out. Oklahoma has a gaming commission that forbids blading and other stuff, a Lights Out match should not have been scheduled there. If this was the week always planned for this match, they should have known to schedule elsewhere. If the venue was scheduled first, then they should have worked the creative schedule around to fit this match in a better compatible location. That match just ended up being a standard hardcore match you'd see at a PG rated company with a different set of weapons when it could have been so much better being a legitimate AEW style hardcore match."

[3.0] "Not much is clicking with me about the product right now, it's not as bad as the last January but it's pretty boring and uninspired. Don Callis family being a primary focus is such a shame, everybody and their grandma constantly joining the faction exposes the problems with an overbloated roster on screen and constant nonsense beatdowns and repetitive feuds with the same people created a sense of stagnation in the overall direction of many people. The whole Andrade saga was one bizarre episode and his re-debut didn't feel as exciting as his og one. Moxley acts like a face now because of the crowd sentiment shifting not because that was his planned character direction and trajectory and it shows. Rest of his group stayed the same which feels disconnected from him and it's really awkward. Another multi tag match which did nothing for me, just used it as a background noise. Women celebration segment was the same segment from a couple of months ago only with two faces added. At least have to give credit to Mone because she's trying to do something different other than her stale dance dance ceo character which I appreciate even though it doesn't really click with me. Kris is an ice cold champion feels constantly second fiddle to people she's paired with and Willow being a double champ feels so unneccesary, it completely killed any hope for a proper tag division. Thekla promo was fine but her chemistry with spooky girls is really awkward even in these short backstage segments. Bandido-Guevara was a match that happened. MJF-Bandido following segment was fine but there's no suspense in this short term feud, there is no belief that Bandido could beat MJF and become the world champ. If you can't convey any sort of doubt in terms of the result, you basically booked a filler feud which is lame. Other than them having a good match there is no investment to be had here which is a common occurence in AEW. Marina works as an enforcer but her in-ring skills are still not good, that match didn't promise anything good about her future as a singles competitor. Post match angle didn't impress me as Toni and Mina are way bigger than this storyline, it feels like a compelete waste of time for them when they could have been building the tag division. Main event being a 20 minute match detracted from its quality when they could have accomplished the same with the match being half the lenght. Hook didn't look bad which is an improvement but it feels like the way they killed the Opps so suddenly makes it all the more awkward because this feud just doesn't do anyhing for anybody. Overall not really impressed with the direction of the company for a while, last year they had a turn around in creative around the February and I'm hoping they could do the same this year because I don't think there is any compelling stories or feuds happening right now. Pretty much all the top stars are just spinning their wheels waiting for ... something I guess?"

[8.0] "Quality show, nothing extremely memorable in-ring wise, but some great in-ring promos really elevated this show, babyfaces standing tall has been much needed, MJF/Bandido's stuff was classic CLASSIC pro wrestling and far far above what MJF has done in quite some time, good show if a bit fillierish, quite a few weeks until Revolution."

[5.0] "Very weak episode of Dynamite for me, the in-ring action really underdelivered and went too long in those weak matches too, which makes the creative issues stand out more glaringly. Creatively speaking, the only thing that was truly great on this show for me was the MJF and Bandido stuff. That was excellent and we need more of that please. I long for them to end the conglomeration vs death riders feud. Jake Doyle is a cool addition and hopefully he and davis gets a push as to counter any sense that everyone in the callis family besides fletcher takeshita okada and maybe Andrade is just nwo b-team geeks."

[9.0] "Great show, the first hour especially. All matches delivered aside from the womens one which was a bit odd. I like Marina a lot but her KO attacks after the match don't make much sense and look sloppy. The trios match was fantastic."

[5.0] "First half of the show was some of the best tv, but everything after the Mercedes/Willow segment feel flat the first two matches were really good as too be expected with Moxley & Young Bucks trio action but the last three matches where nothing special"

[8.0] "Mixed bag of a show with a lot of fine ideas and odd execution. The opening segment was awkward but Jake Something is a nice (and hilarious in regards to the DCF size) addition. He and Mark Davis looked really good, they should push them hard in the tag division. Give the depths of the DCF more personality. Wasn't the biggest fan of the opening match because they did too much outside the ring that wasn't needed, Shelton hits a superplex on Mox but then Mox gets up and lands the nexts strike (huh? ) and I'm just generally not a Mox fan so it's hard to get into his stuff. There were a couple of good vid packs including the WK main event and Brody Kings' as well. 6 man tag was fantastic despite having minimal structure. Triple Samoan drop was great. All the super kick stuff on Toa was great and the finishing stretch was excellent. Chaotic post match with the DCF, Jetspeed and FTR, but I enjoyed it enough. Willow segment was strong. She's AMAZING on the mic imo and RJ needs to cook something for her that leads to a satisfying world title win. I know people hate cake segments and the end of this kinda violated face/heel dynamics but I thoroughly enjoyed it despite the issues with the lights (really bad look). Collision recap, logically tying to a pretty good Briscoe segment. Thekla carry job on the TOM promo as usual, but I like the match they've setup. Didn't enjoy the start of the Bandido match but I like the 21 plex to springboard cutter reversal, as well as the flip out reversal shortly after. Sammy has something between real and go away heat. Nice finish to a decent match but they maybe should've found someone more credible if they wanted to make it this competitive. Thoroughly enjoyed the post match with MJF. Really good use of both men. Shafir v Storm started off nice and I kinda enjoy mid card death riders (despite not being a Mox fan). Marina overdid the mocking of the dance routine stuff and she's still struggling with the headscissor faceplant move. The match was going well till she kinda slowed the pace down. Rare dq finish but I didn't mind and the post match was fine. Reasonable PAC/Darby segment. I find the lights out theme a bit cringe but I also get what it represents and I was in favor of this match being made (in terms of logical progression for Hangman, maybe not Swerve). A lot of awkward things about how this started. Ultimately, they did a lot here, and a lot of it wasn't smooth but points for effort. I kinda like the idea of Hangman & Swerve punishing people with the stuff they used to punish each other and I liked the Nana coffee spot, I just feel like aew struggle in the presentation & propaganda department. Like, they aren't always great at getting ideas across in a way that's clear and unmistakable plus the crowd size and light stuff (this week) doesn't help the overall feel. 7.7/10"

[9.0] "This was an episode of Dynamite that wholly over-delivered for me. Going into it I felt broadly fine about the announced matches and segments, and wary about the location given it's a big, cavernous arena (not that the arena didn't play a part with its godforsaken lights), but on the whole this show exceeded my expectations quite drastically. The opening match was an excellent slugfest with a finish that completely threw me, as I would've bet the house on a draw, followed by a trios match that was just absolutely nonstop excellence from all six men. Willow's celebration was hokey in a good way (is there a cake Mercedes won't go into? ) and I really appreciated the focus being on Willow and Stat as opposed to just whoever was interrupting. I did NOT have high hopes for a Sammy Guevara match in 2026 but goddamn, Bandido pulled off a miracle in bringing out a truly good match from him. MJF's promo afterwards stayed the right side of the line, and I really appreciated Bandido getting a lot in on Max before their title match next week (not that he's gonna win). Toni and Marina was truly the only letdown of the show and the only thing that keeps this from being a 10, as I thought they had a broadly fine match with a finish that was a headscratcher for sure. Then the lights out match, and oh my god. A Hook match in Anno Domini 2026 actually had me jumping out of my chair, though largely thanks to the efforts of Swerve, Hangman and Hobbs (Hobbs is the man, man) with some of the sickest bumps and shots you're likely to see in wrestling. Great show overall!"