[2023-02-01-AEW-Dynamite] Darby Allin vs Samoa Joe (No Holds Barred)

[ShittyLittleBoots]

Darby Allin defends the TNT Championship.

This was fucking awesome. Exactly what a No Holds Barred match between these two should look like. Memorable spots & visuals throughout. Violence. Joe gets to be the best Samoa Joe-in-2023 possible because of Darby's willingness to get completely ragdolled. Fuck yes. ***3/4

[BigVanCrush]

I was at this show live and from the bottom of the bleachers, the fans standing up and half-blocking my view of the stuff on the floor turned this into one of those crazy World Star mall brawl videos where you see just enough of what's going on and your brain fills in the rest of the insanity. The crowd was really lively for this, and it translated well when I watched it on TV the following day. Turns out my brain filled in all the insanity with what was actually happening, Darby doing the dive only for Joe to do the "fuck you" walk away spot and Darby crashing through the table was insane. They went pretty stupid in this with big gimmicks like the thumbtack hoodie and the avalanche muscle buster that somehow missed the exposed planks, but I'll forgive that just because it was 2023 Samoa joe doing that particular spot. Darby brings out the best in Joe because Darby is willing and able to just be a victim in every match and Joe is the perfect bully for Darby to be victimized by. This might be my favorite thing I've ever seen live, it was an insane brawl the likes of which we rarely get now, where most of it just feels like it unfolds organically as opposed to everything needing a big set up right just before it happens. As of this writing, it's my second favorite AEW match of the year and probably my fourth or fifth overall favorite match this year. ****3/4