AEW Holiday Bash - Dynamite recap for December 23, 2020

The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho and MJF) beat Top Flight (Dante and Darius Martin) after Jake Hager pulls Darius Martin off the ropes on a springboard move from the outside. After the match, Jake Hager says it has been two weeks since The Inner Circle came together as a team, and since then, they have won, because every member of the group has done their job except for Wardlow. Hager says that Inner Circle is the real family business, and says that while Wardlow is an asset, he is also an asshole. Hager then announces that he has spoken with Tony Khan and has gotten a match with Wardlow for next week.

We see a music video from The Acclaimed for a song called "Buck Hunt," where Max Caster makes fun of them for quitting Twitter and accuses them of kissing wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer's ass for star ratings.

Tony Schiavone interviews Sting in the ring. Sting says he knows he has come full circle with his return to "the jungle" and TNT, and he is happy to see that "the jungle" is still thriving and alive and that he can still be a part of it. Sting says that he remembers "looking for the break" and watching a match with Dusty Rhodes, and he remembers Dusty giving him a more colorful appearance and putting him in a match with Ric Flair. He then says that when he saw Cody Rhodes in the ring and what he was doing in AEW, he just could not stay away and wanted to be a part of it. Suddenly, Team Taz shows up, and Taz says Sting is all about himself and that he is tired of Schiavone building him up. Ricky Starks also mentions that Sting keeps sticking his nose in their business, and says he will get hurt playing around in "this jungle." Taz says he has four hungry tigers ready to bite Sting's head off, and as they approach the ring, the lights go out. When they come back on, Darby Allin is in the ring. Taz decides to take the high road, and says that "The Machine" Brian Cage will tear Darby's head off when they square off for the TNT title in two weeks. Cage, not wanting to wait, has to be held back.

We hear from MJF, who meets with Proud 'n Powerful. MJF apologizes to Ortiz, saying that his grandfather recently passed from cancer and that he knows how hard it is and that he is here for him. Santana shakes his hand, and tells MJF to keep his head up. After Santana leaves, Ortiz also shakes his hand.

Jurassic Express (Luchasaurus, Jungle Boy, Marko Stunt) beats The Dark Order (Alan "5" Angels, Preston "10" Vance, Colt Cabana). After the match, Tony Schiavone interviews Jurassic Express. Marko Stunt says it feels good to be back on Dynamite, then FTR and Tully Blanchard show up on the video screen. Tully says they are the tag team of the year, and since Jurassic Express wants to beat them and make a name for themselves, they have two weeks to prepare. He says that business is now personal and that FTR is coming for the tag team gold, and that dinosaurs will not keep them down. Tully also tells Marko that if he gets involved, he will have a flashback from the '80s.

Backstage, Alex Marvez interviews Don Callis and Kenny Omega in a nearby hotel. Callis says he does not understand how Tony Khan lets wrestlers run amok in WWE, and says that it needs to stop, as Omega is world champion and they do not get dictated by talent. Omega tells Rey Fenix that he choked everywhere he has been as of late, and asks what will happen if he faces somebody who despises him, saying he may not just hurt him and will put him out for good before Impact Wrestling takes him back. Omega says guys like him get titles while he gets titles, and tells him he will see him next week at New Year's Smash.

Eddie Kingston guests on commentary for the next match.

PAC beats The Butcher after Lance Archer shows up and confronts Eddie Kingston, distracting The Butcher and allowing PAC to hit a superkick followed by the Black Arrow for the win.

We hear from Jade Cargill, who congratulates Brandi Rhodes on her new child, then says everything will be better with Brandi not being around. She then demands an opponent worthy of her time after Shaquille O'Neil called out Cody Rhodes, and says time is ticking.

Tony Schiavone interviews Kip Sabian and Miro. Sabian says his wedding with Penelope Ford will be a big deal for the fans, as they cannot wait for their wedding after seeing their support. Before he can announces when the wedding will take place, Best Friends' (Chuck Taylor, Trent, Orange Cassidy) entrance theme plays, then it is revealed to be a joke before the video screen shows Trent being put in an ambulance, with Orange Cassidy and Chuck Taylor joining him on the ride. It is then announced that the wedding will be a beach wedding and it will take place at Beach Break on February 3rd.

"The Natural" Dustin Rhodes beats Evil Uno. After the match, Dustin Rhodes rejects Evil Uno's offer to join The Dark Order and hits him with a pump kick. Stu Grayson lays out Rhodes, and he and Evil Uno take out Lee Johnson and QT Marshall when they try to assist. Johnson gets back up, however, and hits them with a double drop kick.

Tony Schiavone interviews Shawn Spears. Spears says he is more talented than 95% of the roster as well as everyone else, and says that management has pushed him into a slot where he isn't and into a road that he has been down before. When Schiavone asks him if he has considered he is the problem, Spears takes offense and says he will come back to AEW when he feels like it.

Dasha Gonzalez interviews Hikaru Shida before the next match, but Shida is soon attacked by Abadon.

Hikaru Shida beats Alex Gracia after briefly giving Abadon a beatdown. After the match, Shida confronts Abadon with a Kendo stick, and Abadon yanks the stick away from Shida before the two of them brawl.

Next week: The return of Jon Moxley! Abadon vs. Hikaru Shida for the AEW Women's World Championship! In two weeks: Brian Cage vs. Darby Allin for the TNT Championship! Cody Rhodes vs. Matt Sydal!

The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson) retain the AEW World Tag Team Championships against The Acclaimed (Max Caster and Anthony Bowens).