Dynasty 2024
Date: April 21, 2024
Location: Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re back on pay per view and this time around we have a few big matches. First of all, Samoa Joe is defending the World Title against Swerve Strickland. In the match that might be bigger than that though, Bryan Danielson is facing Will Ospreay in a dream match. Finally, we have FTR vs. the Young Bucks in a ladder match for the vacant Tag Team Titles. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Trent Beretta vs. Matt Sydal

Trent comes out to the Best Friends theme to really crank up the villainy. Sydal knocks him to the floor to start and drops him again on the floor before going back inside. A standing Sliced Bread and a standing twisting moonsault give Sydal two but Beretta is back up with a brainbuster. Sydal gets sent outside but comes back in with a knockdown, allowing him to strike away.

A leg trap cradle gives Sydal two, only for Beretta to grab a half and half suplex. Sydal takes him down again and hits the top rope Meteora for two of his own. They go to the corner, where Beretta drops him face first onto the buckle to knock him silly. The Gotch Style piledriver gets two on Sydal, setting up the running knee into something like a triangle choke for the win at 8:11.

Rating: C. Total Rampage match here and that’s all it was ever going to be. Beretta is fresh off of his heel turn and is gearing up for a showdown with Orange Cassidy. On the other hand you have Sydal, who is the guy you put out there for the sake of making someone else look good. This was only going to be Beretta winning a not very long match and that’s what we got.

Post match Beretta won’t let go so Matt’s brother Mike and Chuck Taylor make the save. Beretta gives Taylor until Dynamite to make up his mind about where he stands. Orange Cassidy comes out for his match and Beretta bails, mainly due to the threat of violence from Cassidy’s partner.

Zero Hour: Orange Cassidy/Katsuyori Shibata vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Anthony Ogogo is on commentary as Moriarty takes Cassidy down by the arm to start. Moriarty cranks on said arm but Cassidy uses the power of the pockets to escape and send Moriarty down. Shibata comes in and wins a wrestle off before knocking Moriarty into the corner. It’s off to Taylor for an exchange of chops and forearms with Shibata getting the better of things.

Cassidy comes in and takes Moriarty outside, where Ogogo comes off commentary for a distraction. Taylor knocks Cassidy silly and the big apron legdrop crushes him to make it worse. Back in and Moriarty grabs an abdominal stretch but Taylor misses a splash in the corner. The tag brings Shibata in to kick away, including the running dropkick to Moriarty.

Taylor breaks up an abdominal stretch so Shibata takes him into the corner so the double striking can ensue. Beach Break is broken up and Moriarty snaps Cassidy’s fingers, only to have Cassidy grab the tornado DDT. Shibata kicks Taylor outside, leaving Cassidy to Orange Punch Moriarty for the pin at 12:44.

Rating: C. Another match that could have been on this week’s TV shows rather than taking up time here. I’m guessing the idea was the showdown between Cassidy and Trent Beretta, plus getting Shibata on the card. It’s not a bad match, but there’s a reason this was only thrown on at the last minute with little story.

Zero Hour: Ring Of Honor Six Man Tag Team Titles/AEW Trios Titles: Bullet Club Gold vs. Acclaimed/Billy Gunn

Winner take all and Caster gets an extended rap for a change. Bowens takes Austin into the corner to start before jumping over him and grabbing a backdrop. Colten comes in and has a seat so it’s off to Billy, which has Colten a little more nervous. Billy gets to clean house but gets taken into the wrong corner, meaning the beating is on. White’s chops just annoy Billy but Austin hitting him in the back makes it even worse.

A right hand drops Austin and it’s back to Caster for an armdrag into an armbar. Bowens neckbreaker Austin into a backbreaker from Caster and there’s Scissor Me Timbers. A cheap shot lets White take Caster outside though and whip him into the barricade. Back in and Colten grabs the chinlock but Caster is right back up for the tag to Bowens. Everything breaks down and Bowens gets dropkicked out to the floor with White throwing him back in.

Austin kicks him down and grabs another chinlock, with Bowens suplexing his way to freedom. That’s enough for the tag off to Billy so house can be cleaned. Billy misses a Fameasser and Austin hits his own for two. 3:10 To Yuma gets two more but the Acclaimed is back in for the save. That’s broken up as well so Billy has to power out of the sleeper suplex. The real Fameasser gets two on White, who is right back with the Blade Runner for the pin at 14:48.

Rating: C+. This was a bit long but what matters the most is they got rid of one see of titles. There has never been a reason for two sets of six man titles and thankfully one of them is going away. Acclaimed and Gunn winning would have made less than zero sense as they are ice cold right now so this was the logical result in both ways.

And now, the show proper.

The opening video looks at the big matches and talks about building a dynasty.

Continental Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Pac

Pac is challenging and the fans are VERY interested at the opening bell. They start slowly and exchange wrist control until Pac grabs a headlock takeover. Back up and Pac hurricanranas him to the floor, setting up the big running flip dive. Pac whips him into the barricade, with Okada seeming to favor his shoulder. A super brainbuster (geez) gives Pac two so he goes up, only to get dropkicked off for a hard crash onto the apron.

Back in and Okada hits a running kick to the head, followed by the dropkick to put Okada on the floor again. The hanging DDT plants Pac, who barely beats the count back in, and a regular DDT gets two. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Pac fights up and sends him to the floor, setting up the top rope Asai moonsault. Back in and a missile dropkick gives Pac two and he snaps off a German suplex, only to get dropkicked into the corner. Okada grabs the Air Raid Crash onto the knee, setting up the top rope elbow for two more.

Pac is back up and kicks him in the head and muscles him over with a German suplex. A Helluva Kick looks to set up the Black Arrow but Okada gets out just in time. Okada grabs the Tombstone but the Rainmaker is reversed into the Brutalizer. That’s broken up as well and Pac hits a nasty Tombstone of his own, only to have the Black Arrow hit raised knees. The Rainmaker retains the title at 21:52.

Rating: B+. This was a match designed to have two guys beat the fire out of each other for a good while and that’s exactly what happened. It was a heck of a fight with Pac being the perfect choice to go after Okada in his first title defense. There’s a reason Pac has this kind of a reputation and it’s a shame that he has to miss so much time due to various reasons.

Post match Pac gets the big respectful ovation.

We recap the House Of Black vs. Adam Copeland/Eddie Kingston/Mark Briscoe. The House went after Copeland and now he has some friends, who happen to have recently fought over the Ring Of Honor World Title, on his side.

Adam Copeland/Eddie Kingston/Mark Briscoe vs. House Of Black

Taz can’t believe that Copeland is teaming with Kingston and Briscoe, showing he doesn’t watch Collision either. Matthews takes Briscoe up against the ropes to start but it’s quickly off to Copeland to hammer away in the corner. Black comes in, stares at Copeland, and then hands it off to King instead. King misses a clothesline so Kingston comes in for the strike off, which goes rather badly for him.

Kingston fights up and knocks him to his knees, setting up a big chop, followed by the rapid fire chops in the corner. King is back up and knocks Kingston into the other corner, where Matthews takes over for a change. It’s back to Black for the chinlock but Kingston fights up and strikes away (you might notice a theme here). The big tag brings in Briscoe to clean house, including an enziguri to send Matthews to the floor.

There’s the running dropkick through the ropes so Matthews….throws him a chair, allowing Briscoe to hit the step up flip dive to take Matthews down again. King comes over to Death Valley Driver Briscoe into the barricade, meaning the beating is taken into the wrong corner. Black grabs a chinlock but Briscoe fights up again, allowing the tag back to Copeland. King chops him off the top for a nasty crash so Kingston comes in to chop away instead.

Copeland is back up with a top rope superplex to bring King down again and everyone needs a breather. King gets up and hits a discus lariat on Briscoe, only to get spinning backfisted by Kingston. Copeland adds a spear and Briscoe’s Froggy Bow gets two. Black comes back in for the staredown with Copeland but Briscoe cuts it off. The House cleans house but the good guys are back with triple spears for another knockdown. We settle down to Black vs. Copeland…and it’s the mist into the end to give Black the pin at 17:41.

Rating: B. This got some time and the ending was the right way to go, with Black getting the win to likely set himself up as the next challenger to the TNT Title. They teased the heck out of the Copeland vs. Black showdown and then it lasted all of ten seconds, which makes things all the more interesting. Good stuff here, and it even set up something extra down the road.

We recap Julia Hart vs. Willow Nightingale for the TBS Title. Hart has the title, Nightingale wants it, end of recap.

TBS Title: Julia Hart vs. Willow Nightingale

Hart is defending and Nightingale has Kris Statlander with her. Nightingale starts fast and knocks her out of the corner before going up. That takes a bit too long though and Hart knocks him to the floor, with Nightingale being knocked over the announcers’ table. The reverse chinlock goes on until Nightingale powers up and pulls her into a sleeper. Hart slips out so Nightingale plants her with a spinebuster for two. Nightingale charges into some boots in the corner but manages to raise her boots to block the moonsault. The Babe With The Powerbomb gives Nightingale the pin and the title at 6:00.

Rating: C+. That was the way the result needed to go as Nightingale FINALLY wins something important. While this is probably setting up her dropping the title to Mercedes Mone next month, at least she has the title in the first place and that is great to see. Nightingale could be a star due to her high level of likability, but she needed this kind of a win to move her forward.

Post match Nightingale celebrates with Statlander and Stokely Hathaway, only to have Mercedes Mone come out for the staredown. With that out of the way, Nightingale gets to celebrate again.

We recap the International Title, with Roderick Strong defending against Kyle O’Reilly. They used to be friends and now they’re fighting for the title.

International Title: Kyle O’Reilly vs. Roderick Strong

Strong is defending and they go technical to start with O’Reilly’s ankle lock being broken up. Back up and Strong hits the jumping leg lariat for two but O’Reilly knocks him back again. Strong catches him on top and drops him hard onto the buckle. Another backbreaker cuts O’Reilly off but he comes back with a bunch of strikes to get a breather. Strong comes right back with an Angle Slam into the running forearms against the ropes.

The running boot against the ropes is blocked though and O’Reilly grabs the kneebar. That’s broken up so O’Reilly strikes away, only to get pulled into another backbreaker for another two. A top rope superplex gives Strong two but O’Reilly ties the legs up into a small package for the same.

Another exchange of strikes lets O’Reilly grab a German suplex but Strong knees him in the face for the double knockdown. Cue Wardlow for a distraction so Strong can get two off a small package. Back up and O’Reilly hits a brainbuster, setting up the cross armbreaker to send Strong over to the ropes. Strong is back up with End Of Heartache for the pin to retain at 17:19.

Rating: C+. It was technically sound but this match didn’t feel interesting coming in and they lost my interest rather quickly. Anything with the Undisputed Kingdom is running with an anchor right now and that was the case here. Strong had to keep the title to keep the group going, but could they please find something to do other than another Undisputed Era reunion?

Post match the Undisputed Kingdom, including Adam Cole, comes out to celebrate.

We recap Hook vs. Chris Jericho for the former’s FTW Title.

Hook vs. Chris Jericho

Hook is defending under FTW Rules and they show respect to start. Feeling out process to start until Hook grabs the first suplex. They go to the floor with Hook….I think missing an apron clothesline but it came off like some miscommunication. Jericho loads up a table but Hook is back with the trashcan lid shots. With that broken up, Jericho trashcans him down as well and they go back inside.

Jericho knocks him to the apron, where Hook suplexes him down through a table for a nasty crash and a near fall on the floor. Back in and Jericho hammers away but stops to grab a trashcan, allowing Hook to snap off a German suplex. The trashcan is put over Jericho and Hook grabs the kendo stick for the beating.

Another suplex, with Jericho in the can, lets Hook load up another table in the corner. Jericho grabs a Codebreaker and they’re both down. They slug it out from their knees with Jericho getting the better of things, only to miss a Rockers’ fist drop. Redrum goes on until Jericho drives him through the table for the break.

The Judas Effect is countered into a kneebar but Jericho reverses into the Walls. Hook reverses into a small package for two and grabs Redrum, only to have Jericho kick him low (which the camera misses). Now the Judas Effect (with an “I’m sorry”) can connect for two so Jericho hits it again…for two again. Jericho grabs the baseball bat, says he’s sorry, and knocks Hook cold to win at 16:50.

Rating: D+. When I was writing up my preview for this show, I could not shake the feeling that AEW would give Jericho the win here because it would be the dumbest thing possible. Jericho is just a disaster right now and having him beat Hook, who already beat him once, is a mind blowing concept. The fans are not interested in seeing Jericho right now yet here he is, complete with a new title. He needs to go away for a bit, and I don’t see that happening anytime soon.

We recap Toni Storm defending the Women’s Title against Thunder Rosa. Storm is on a roll as champion but Rosa never lost the title so this is her big rematch.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Thunder Rosa

Storm, with Mariah May, is defending and Rosa isn’t wearing face paint for a change. They fight into the corner with Storm powering her around, only to get hit in the face. Storm kicks her in the ribs for a breather but Rosa knocks Storm out to the floor. There’s the big corkscrew dive but Rosa has to stop and glare at May. The forearms to the chest give Rosa two, only to have Storm come back with a backbreaker for the same.

Some shots to the back let Storm take her to the top, where Rosa powerbombs her down for two more. A Death valley Driver onto the apron plants Storm (Nigel McGuinness: “OH THE HUMANITY!”) for two more. Storm is back with a Backstabber out of the corner, followed by a bottom rope DDT of all things. A fisherman’s suplex gives Storm two but Rosa’s stomp connects for the same.

Storm grabs a chokebomb for two so Rosa slugs away, only to charge into a headbutt. May offers a distraction so here is Deonna Purrazzo to brawl with her to the back. Storm grabs a German suplex to set up the hip attack. Storm Zero gets two so Storm busts out the Texas Cloverleaf. Rosa gets out and grabs a Backstabber into a cobra clutch but Storm escapes as well. A low kick sets up another Storm Zero to retain at 15:05.

Rating: B. This was a nice surprise and better than I was expecting. It was one of the better Storm matches in AEW and Rosa’s best since her return as it felt like a big time fight. Storm is in a weird place as champion though as the only person to come after the title is May, and that is going to need some adjusting to set up. For now though, rather good stuff.

We recap Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay. It’s going to be good. End of story.

Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay

Don Callis is on commentary. Nigel talks about Danielson saying his version of Heaven is bleeding in a ring. Nigel: “My version of Heaven is him dying from bleeding in a ring.” Osprey grabs a front facelock to start but Danielson reverses into a headlock as the feeling out process begins. That’s broken up and the fans hit that BRUV chant. Another exchange goes to another standoff and the fans find this awesome.

Danielson goes with the chops but it’s too early for the LeBell Lock. Ospreay misses the big kicks to the head and the fans are way into this. Ospreay flips over and scores with a dropkick but Danielson strikes away against the ropes. A running boot knocks Danielson outside and there’s the big dive to take him out again. Back in and Danielson gets smart by going after the knee/ribs but Ospreay escapes again.

Danielson is sent into the corner and a running boot connects for two. Ospreay sends him outside for the big corkscrew dive to leave them both down. Back in again and Danielson grabs a tiger suplex for two, followed by the heavy elbows. Cattle Mutilation goes on for a bit until Danielson puts him into the corner for the running dropkick. Ospreay sticks the landing on a super hurricanrana so he goes up top, only to get caught with a tiger superplex for the huge crash.

Danielson’s kicks to the chest wake Ospreay up and one heck of a shot drops Danielson for a change. They go to the apron to slug it out and the Oscutter drops Danielson hard. The referee checks on Danielson so Ospreay gets in a Hidden Blade from the apron as the fans think they aren’t worthy. Danielson beats the count and Ospreay stacks him up for two. Danielson grabs La Mistica of all things into the LeBell Lock and then a double arm crank but Ospreay makes the rope.

The running knee is countered into a powerbomb but Danielson counters into a hurricanrana for two instead. Now the running knee connects for two and Danielson is frustrated. The stomping to the head looks to set up another LeBell Lock but Ospreay slips out and fires off forearms to the face. Danielson pulls him into a triangle choke and even the powerbomb can’t break it.

Instead Ospreay picks him up for a Styles Clash but he can’t follow up. They get to their feet with Danielson slapping the heck out of him and grabbing a suplex, only to have Ospreay pop up with the Hidden Blade. The Oscutter is loaded up but Danielson knees it out of the air for the big double down. Danielson does the YES pose in the corner and Ospreay goes to the other corner, where he takes off the elbow pad. The running knee is cut off with the Hidden Blade into the tiger driver onto the neck. Danielson is all vibrating but Ospreay Hidden Blades him for the pin at 32:19.

Rating: A. Back in the late 1920s, a man was driving his Model T Ford when it stopped running. He wasn’t very good with mechanical stuff and was in a bit of a jam when an older man came driving up. The older man asked if he could take a look and fixed it without much trouble. That older man was Henry Ford. Now what does this have to do with Ospreay vs. Danielson?

Nothing. It was outstanding and there was nothing else to say about it so I didn’t bother trying.

Post match the medics check on Danielson and Ospreay is scared, even as his arm is raised.

We recap FTR vs. the Young Bucks for the vacant Tag Team Titles. It’s the latest in their long running series and this is a ladder match.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. FTR

For the vacant titles in a ladder match. FTR takes over to start and goes for the ladders but the Bucks cut them off. The dives drop FTR and it’s time for the ladder to be brought in. FTR cuts that off for a change so it’s time to put some tables up at ringside. That takes too long as well so Wheeler is laid across the ladder for a dive from Matt. Back in and Harwood is busted open as the Bucks beat him down with chairs.

There’s a whip to send Harwood into the ladder in the corner as the blood is gushing. They go outside again with Harwood being sent into a bridged ladder but Wheeler is back up with a moonsault off of said ladder. The Bucks are right back up to crotch Wheeler on the ladder, setting up the EVP Trigger. Harwood gets knocked down again back inside but Wheeler is back in with a powerslam.

FTR hits a bulldog to plant Matt and a slingshot powerbomb puts him down again. That’s not enough as Matt gets knocked off the apron, sending him hard into the barricade. Nick hurricanranas Harwood off the apron and through a table for another nasty crash. All four are back up and go for the climb, with everyone but Matt crashing down. Harwood pulls Matt’s shoes off before FTR busts out the PowerPlex off the ladder for the big crash.

Nick is back up with a 450 to Wheeler through a table, leaving Harwood to piledrive Matt onto a bridged ladder. Wheeler pulls Nick down from the ladder but his suicide dive only hits table. Matt and Harwood go up, earning a PLEASE BE CAREFUL chant. Harwood knocks him down so here is a masked man for the save. And yeah of course it’s Jack Perry. The Bucks win at 21:47.

Rating: B. This was in fact a ladder match and there was almost no reason to believe that the ending was going to be anything else, even down to the interference. There was no way FTR was going to win here as the Bucks are being treated as a big deal again. This match cranked up the violence and it worked well enough, but the ladder gimmick didn’t make things much better.

We recap Samoa Joe defending the World Title against Swerve Strickland. Joe beat Hangman Page to retain in a triple threat match at Revolution so now it’s the singles match for Swerve’s big shot.

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland vs. Samoa Joe

Joe is defending. They take their time to start until Joe hits a knee to the ribs to take over. Joe takes him outside for a toss over the announcers’ table but Swerve gets in a knee to the face. That earns him a hard planting on the floor and they head back inside, with Joe keeping the pace slow.

Joe plants him again and grabs the neck crank as the dominance continues. Swerve tries to fight up and gets elbowed in the face to send him back outside. The floor mats are peeled back but Swerve gets in some shots of his own for a needed breather. Back in and Swerve has to strike his way out of the Koquina Clutch, setting up the rolling Downward Spiral for two. Swerve grabs a headscissors choke but Joe powers him into the corner for the Muscle Buster and another near fall.

Back up and Swerve hits the House Call into a 450 into the Swerve Stomp for two and they need a breather. Joe is right back up with the Koquina Clutch but can’t get the full grip. That lets Swerve get out and hit the House Call for two more. They both go up and Swerve knocks him off again, setting up the Swerve Stomp for the pin and the title at 17:55.

Rating: B. Well, it wasn’t bad and they did the big ending properly, though it didn’t quite get to that top level. The best thing here is that Swerve won the title in what might as well have been his last chance and that is what matters. I’m not sure what is next for either of them right now, but they got the big moment right after a hard hitting match. Well done and a nice way to wrap up the show.

Swerve celebrates for a long time to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Some of the matches in the undercard were a bit weak and some of the decisions (ok so just Jericho) were out there, but that Danielson vs. Ospreay match was outstanding and there were several others that hit or even exceeded their mark. Awesome show here and worth a long long, but you might want to fast forward some parts, as this was another very, very lengthy show. An excellent one, but long.

Results
Trent Beretta b. Matt Sydal – Triangle choke
Orange Cassidy/Katsuyori Shibata b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Orange Punch to Moriarty
Bullet Club Gold b. Billy Gunn/Acclaimed – Blade Runner to Gunn
Kazuchika Okada b. Pac – Rainmaker
House Of Black b. Adam Copeland/Mark Briscoe/Eddie Kingston – The End to Copeland
Willow Nightingale b. Julia Hart – Babe With The Powerbomb
Roderick Strong b. Kyle O’Reilly – End Of Heartache
Chris Jericho b. Hook – Baseball bat shot
Toni Storm b. Thunder Rosa – Storm Zero
Will Ospreay b. Bryan Danielson – Hidden Blade
Young Bucks b. FTR – Bucks pulled down the titles
Swerve Strickland b. Samoa Joe – Swerve Stomp

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Dynamite
Date: April 17, 2024
Location: Farmer’s Coliseum, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

Things took a big turn last week and now we get to see things get back on the right track. One of the biggest ways to do that might be having the return of Jon Moxley, who is now the IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. It’s also the last Dynamite before Dynasty and that could mean some last minute additions. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Jon Moxley to get things going. Moxley talks about how he won one of his first titles right here in Indianapolis and even back then, a lot of people were talking about how he wasn’t what he needed to be. His answer is still the same: watch him do what he does, which is what this IWGP World Heavyweight Title is all about. He’s been chasing the title for five years and no it wasn’t impossible if you know what is beating in his chest.

AEW is about being willing to show the world what you are all about, which brings him to the Don Callis Family. Moxley doesn’t like what is going on with the Family and Bryan Danielson so he’s challenging Powerhouse Hobbs to a match next week. Pain and violence are promised. This started as the latest AEW Rah Rah speech but they did shift away from that pretty quickly. Also, I’m not sure how much we needed a celebration of the new IWGP World Champion on the same week AEW asks you to pay to see an already only so strong AEW World Title match.

Mercedes Mone is not happy with being attacked in the dark last week and the locker room is ON NOTICE (feel free to retire that line anytime soon). She’ll be watching tonight’s mixed tag match.

Adam Copeland/Willow Nightingale vs. House Of Black

Hold on though as Nightingale has been attacked in the back so here is Brody King to jump Copeland from behind. The beating is on before the bell and Copeland is sent into the steps. Copeland gets inside and the bell rings, with the commercial coming in eleven seconds into the (handicap) match.

Back with Copeland fighting out of a superplex and knocking him down, meaning it’s time to strike it out. Copeland hits a running boot in the corner for two, followed by a neckbreaker to put King down again. The spear is cut off but King misses the Cannonball in the corner. Cue Nightingale to go after Hart and hit a Cannonball on King. The distraction lets Hart get in a chain shot, setting up Hartless on the unconscious Nightingale for the win at 8:49.

Rating: C. This was more or less Copeland vs. King until the angle at the end. That doesn’t have me feeling the strongest about Hart’s injury status, but at least she did get in the ring near the end to do something physical. Nightingale needs to win the title so she can have something important on her resume, but I’m not sure I can go for Hart losing the title yet.

Post match Mercedes Mone runs in to chase Hart off. Mone picks up the chair and stares at Nightingale before throwing it down.

Samoa Joe talks about how Swerve Strickland won’t stay down but Joe is ready to beat him again. He’ll have to get the title belt disinfected after Prince Nana touched it but let’s talk about Swerve coming up short every single time. Joe is ready to do his thing as usual and end Swerve once and for all.

The Young Bucks have bumped a package about FTR but promise to beat them on Sunday. Oh and Kazuchika Okada will take care of Pac. Why Tony Khan is just sitting there bewildered isn’t clear.

Young Bucks/Kazuchika Okada vs. Daniel Garcia/Pac/Penta El Zero Miedo

Penta kicks at Matt’s leg to start before sending Nick to the floor. There’s a superkick to Matt as everything breaks down. Matt kicks Garcia from the apron and we take an early break. Back with Matt on a headset doing live commentary (which can be heard in the arena) as he gets the tag. He can’t talk his way out of a belly to back suplex from Garcia so it’s Pac coming in to clean house (with Matt’s mic seemingly being turned off).

Pac hits a moonsault to the floor and goes after Okada, only to get cheap shotted from behind. Everything breaks down and Pac gets in a neck snap over the top to take over. Pac gets smart by dragging Penta over for the tag but the Black Arrow is broken up. Garcia is kicked into Okada’s Tombstone and there’s one for Penta as well. The Rainmaker finishes Garcia at 12:18.

Rating: B-. The action was good but Garcia might as well have worn a shirt saying “I’m taking the pin”. Pac is getting a title shot and Penta feels like too big of a star. That didn’t make for the most drama about the result, though Pac vs. Okada should be a heck of a match when they get the chance to do something. Otherwise, now we can move on to the Bucks winning the titles as the fans continue to leave, but at least AEW can stand their ground.

Post match the winners load up a ladder but Pac makes the save with his ring bell hammer.

Here are Chris Jericho and Hook for a chat with Taz moderating. Jericho thanks Taz for getting this out here before saying Hook wasn’t listening to him as much as he should have last week. Some people think he is great and the truth is Jericho IS the learning tree. Anyone who comes into the Jericho Vortex comes out better and now he’s ready to achieve greatness with Hook. What do you say? Hook: “No.” He doesn’t need Jericho’s help, so Jericho tells him to not be stupid.

Taz tries to cut it off but Jericho says he’s giving Hook some proper guidance like Taz should have a long time ago. Jericho goes on a rant about Hook not being ready and decks Taz for trying to intervene again. Hook grabs Jericho by the shirt and tells him to get out of his ring. Jericho does, as I try to figure out how this is supposed to make Hook like good in any way. We’ve established Hook can beat Jericho up but here he just shoves him a bit and tells him to get away? After Jericho hit Hook’s dad, who had to retire due to injuries and hasn’t wrestled a serious match in 20+ years?

We get a sitdown interview with Swerve Strickland, who doesn’t think much of Samoa Joe calling him a choke artist. Swerve has stumbled before and we hear about some of the horrible things that have happened to him this year. No matter what though, he’s still here. Joe can call him whatever he wants but on Dynasty, Joe can call him champ. Swerve is going to say something to Joe’s face tonight.

Mariah May vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Toni Storm is here too. May takes her into the corner to start but Purrazzo legdrags her way to freedom. It’s way too early for the Fujiwara armbar as May slips to the floor and whips Purrazzo into the barricade. Back in and the Stratusphere is broken up so May shoves her outside instead as we take a break.

We come back with Purrazzo slugging away before grabbing the Fujiwara armbar. May makes the rope again so Purrazzo tries a powerbomb which….doesn’t exactly work. Instead May sends her into the corner for a hip attack into a tornado DDT. Storm doesn’t seem happy and it gets a lot worse as Purrazzo rolls May up for the pin at 8:02.

Rating: C-. Purrazzo is boosted back up as May seems to disappoint Storm yet again. I’m not sure what is next for Purrazzo, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see May get yelled at by Storm, leaving Mina Shirakawa to pick up the pieces. The match itself wasn’t the best either though, as it had multiple sloppy moments and Purrazzo doesn’t exactly look great for winning here.

Post match the beatdown is on until Thunder Rosa runs in to save Purrazzo.

Bullet Club Gold challenges the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn for a winner take all match at Dynasty.

Gunn and the Acclaimed are in.

Shane Taylor vs. Orange Cassidy

The rest of Shane Taylor Promotions are here with Taylor but he says he’s got this. The team stays as Cassidy hits a dropkick to start, only to get draped over the top for a Stunner. Taylor drops him again and we take an early break. Back with Cassidy slugging away but Moriarty and Ogogo offer distractions, allowing Taylor to grab him by the throat. Stundog Millionaire gets Cassidy out of trouble but Taylor hits him in the face. Not that it matters as the Orange Punch gives Cassidy the pin at 8:00.

Rating: C. Taylor has been getting quite a bit of television time in recent weeks and beating him still means just enough. That being said, Cassidy vs. Trent Beretta is one of the most interesting stories going in AEW today and a lot of that has to do with how it feels personal. That can go a long way and it has done so thus far in their story.

Post match the beatdown is on so Christopher Daniels and Matt Sydal run out for the save…but are cut off by Trent Beretta, because Orange Cassidy cannot have any friends.

Video on Roderick Strong vs. Kyle O’Reilly.

Will Ospreay vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Castagnoli grabs a rollup for two to start before blocking a hurricanrana with pure power. An uppercut cuts Ospreay off rather quickly but he knocks Castagnoli outside. Castagnoli walks away from the tease of a dive so Ospreay takes over on the floor, only to have a springboard cut off back inside. They forearm it out with Ospreay managing to knock him outside. Another dive is pulled out of the air and Ospreay is planted as we take a break.

Back with Ospreay getting two off a Phenomenal Forearm before they trade Sharpshooters. With Castagnoli’s broken up, he switches over to a crossface, which is reversed into a tiger driver to give Ospreay two. Back up and Castagnoli hits a hard clothesline for two, followed by Ospreay’s rollup for the same.

Ospreay springboards into a Burning Hammer for another near fall so Ospreay switches to a Spanish Fly for two of his own. Castagnoli grabs the Swing but Ospreay rolls his way up for a DDT (that was sweet). Spiral Tap gives Ospreay two more and the Hidden Blade finishes Castagnoli at 14:23.

Rating: B. These guys had a heck of a match and that shouldn’t be a surprise at this point. That’s kind of what Ospreay does and putting him in there against Castagnoli is a guaranteed good match. Ospreay will be ready for Bryan Danielson at Dynasty and this brings it a bit closer to home, but “yeah this was a good match, but wait until you see THIS MATCH” is still only getting me so far.

Post match the Don Callis Family comes in for the beatdown so here is Jon Moxley to go after Powerhouse Hobbs.

We run down the Dynasty card.

Here is Swerve Strickland (a minute after the show was supposed to end) for a chat. People have been asking why he thinks he’s going to beat Samoa Joe but last week Joe showed him everything he needed to see. Now Swerve is out here waiting for Joe to come out here and hear it face to face.

Cue Joe so security comes out, only to have Swerve come off the top and Stomp them to land in front of Joe. The brawl is on, with Prince Nana offering a distraction so Swerve can kick Joe in the face. Joe catches him on top and plants him down before posing with the title to end the show. Swerve’s dive was great, but he almost has to win the title on Sunday.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling continues to be good, though I’m having a hard time getting into Dynasty. Between the Young Bucks continuing to take the interest out of everything they touch, the lack of anything more than “Danielson vs. Ospreay will be great” and Jericho getting his hooks into Hook, there is a lot of stuff here that really isn’t making me care. That being said, Cassidy vs. Beretta has potential, Okada vs. Pac should be a war and Swerve vs. Joe had a heck of a nice final push. Good stuff from the wrestlers, less so from the storytelling, making it quite the AEW show.

Results
House Of Black b. Adam Copeland/Willow Nightingale – Hartless to Nightingale
Young Bucks/Kazuchika Okada b. Penta El Zero Miedo/Pac/Daniel Garcia – Rainmaker to Garcia
Deonna Purrazzo b. Mariah May – Sunset flip
Orange Cassidy b. Shane Taylor – Orange Punch
Will Ospreay b. Claudio Castagnoli – Hidden Blade

Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Battle Of The Belts X
Date: April 13, 2024
Location: Truist Arena, Highland Heights, Kentucky
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

We’re back for another one of these things and that could go in a few directions. The card is focused on titles, but in this case there are no actual AEW titles on the line. Instead we have an unsanctioned title, an ROH title, and a title eliminator match. That’s quite the way to go so let’s get to it.

We open with fallout from the end of Collision, with the Don Callis Family laying out Bryan Danielson on the ramp.

Hook is asked about his title defense against Shane Taylor. Katsuyori Shibata, through the translator, says he has his back, but Hook respectfully has this.

FTW Title: Hook vs. Shane Taylor

Hook is defending under FTW Rules. The early strikes only get Hook so far but he low bridges Taylor out to the floor. The hard knees to the chest have Taylor in more trouble but Taylor drops him with a shot to the ribs back inside. Taylor starts in on the ribs, which he drapes across the top rope as we take a break.

Back with Taylor hitting a legdrop on the apron and pounding him down into the corner. Hook won’t quit so Taylor whips him into the corner again. The splash misses and Hook slugs away before grabbing the German suplex. Taylor is back with a release Rock Bottom out of the corner though and a middle rope splash gets two. Taylor can’t believe it but Hook grabs the Redrum, with even a drop to the mat not being enough to keep it broken. Hook keeps cranking and Taylor is out at 10:25.

Rating: C+. Classic big vs. little man match here with Hook hanging in there until the end and choking Taylor out. It was feeling like the Bayley vs. Nia Jax match from Takeover: London a good many years ago and that is not a bad thing. Hook gets to slay a monster and Taylor isn’t going to lose any status by putting Hook over here.

Rocky Romero is ready for Roderick String. Kyle O’Reilly comes in to wish him luck.

Roderick Strong vs. Rocky Romero

Non-title and the Undisputed Era is here with Strong. They fight over wrist control to start and then grapple to the mat with neither being able to get that far ahead. A running hurricanrana sends Strong into the corner and Romero starts in on the arm. Strong’s arm is fine enough to grab a backbreaker but Romero is back with a running basement dropkick. Romero sends him outside for a double stomp off the apron and we take a break.

Back with Romero fighting out of a chinlock and kicking him out to the floor. Romero hits some dives to take out Strong and company, followed by a standing Sliced Bread for two. Strong hits the Sick Kick for two of his own but Romero snaps off a hurricanrana into a tornado DDT. They go up top with a super Sliced Bread giving Romero two more. Romero goes up top but dives into a jumping knee to retain Strong’s title at 11:39.

Rating: C+. So Strong beats him clean with a jumping knee to the face. Why then was this match on a show about championships non-title? Anyway, it was another match where the people involved will all but guarantee that it’s at least decent but the idea of Romero winning a title in AEW isn’t the most plausible concept.

Post match Kyle O’Reilly comes in to check on Romero but the Undisputed Era comes in to lay O’Reilly out.

Serena Deeb would love to face Yuka Sakazaki and needs to climb the rankings so they can fight.

Ring Of Honor Women’s Title: Athena vs. Red Velvet

Athena, with her minion Billie Starkz (and with other minion Lexi Nair handling the ring introductions), is defending. They fight over a lockup to start until velvet snaps off some armdrags. Velvet knocks her outside for a moonsault off the apron but a belly to back suplex onto the apron drops Velvet right back down.

We take a break and come back with Velvet hitting some running knees against the ropes. Athena grabs a fireman’s carry, only to have Velvet snap off a hurricanrana to escape. Velvet flips her off the top and kicks Athena in the head, setting up a tornado DDT. Athena is back up and they crash out to the floor, where Athena sends her into the apron. Back in and Velvet grabs a rollup for two but Athena hits her in the face. The O Face (top rope Stunner) retains the title at 12:44.

Rating: C. The only good thing here was getting to see Athena having a chance on the main show (or at least in AEW) rather than being stuck in ROH forever. It worked well enough as Velvet is pretty low in the division, but she wasn’t the point here. Athena needs to be up in AEW already, but for some reason it just hasn’t happened yet.

Post match Athena and Starkz beat Velvet down but Queen Aminata comes in for the save. Aminata stares at Athena and kicks her to the floor to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. And this is the latest Battle Of The Belts, as it continues to feel like AEW is going “erg, we have to do this again?”. This show managed to not actually feature any AEW titles being defended, including a non-title match on a show about titles. The big story here was a likely match between Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong being set up, which doesn’t quite feel like it needed an hour long special. As usual, the shows aren’t terrible, but they feel so detached from everything that matters in AEW. I know it gets a small audience, but maybe that would change if they, I don’t know, tried?

Results
Hook b. Shane Taylor – Redrum
Roderick Strong b. Rocky Romero – Jumping knee
Athena b. Red Velvet – O Face

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Collision
Date: April 13, 2024
Location: Truist Arena, Highland Heights, Kentucky
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

It’s time for the big double shot this wee as Collision is leading into the next Battle Of The Belts. That should make for an important night and hopefully it makes for a more interesting show. We’re also eight days away from Dynasty and now we need to get things ready. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We look at Jon Moxley winning the IWGP World Title last night in Chicago.

The Blackpool Combat Club is proud of Moxley’s win but they’re ready for the Don Callis Family tonight.

House Of Black vs. Dante Martin/Matt Sydal/Action Andretti

Darius Martin is off getting his pilot license so Sydal is taking his place. Andretti has to roll out of a wristlock to start and grabs one of his own. With that broken up, it’s off to Sydal, who takes Black down as well. Dante comes in off the top but Black drills him with a clothesline. King wrecks all three of them, including Black kicking Martin into a heck of a wheelbarrow suplex.

The big dive takes out the good guys again and we settle down to Matthews hitting a running kick to Andretti’s face. Andretti manages to kick his way to freedom though and it’s back to Sydal to clean house. We take a break and come back with Sydal grabbing a poisonrana to send Matthews outside.

The hot tag brings in Martin to pick up the pace, including an enziguri for two on Black. Everything breaks down and Andretti hits a big dive on Matthews, only to get moonsaulted by Black. Back in and the good guys hit a bunch of triple superkicks but the House kicks right back to even things up. Andretti’s 450 gets two on King but Sydal is sent into the corner. The Cannonball/running boots combination finishes for King at 14:22.

Rating: B. This took its time to get going but they got going by the end and it was a heck of a back and forth match. You had the House working together as a unit against the other guys who were fighting for all they had. It got going in the last few minutes with the big spots that Andretti and company know how to do rather well. Rather nice stuff here.

We look at Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa giving Mariah May dueling kisses.

Storm says get used to what you were seeing last week and teases kissing May again but gets distracted by talk of her match with AZM. Storm promises to give AZM a beating so intense that it will be “featured in a fetish periodical.”

Video on Swerve Strickland.

Following his loss on Dynamite, Chris Jericho talked to Taz, who says he’ll try to talk to Hook for Jericho.

Lee Moriarty vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Shane Taylor is re with Moriarty and Anthony Ogogo is on commentary. Moriarty takes him down for a choke but Shibata reverses into a wristlock. Shibata switches to the leg and gets a Figure Four, with Moriarty bailing over to the ropes. They go to the floor where Ogogo gets in a cheap shot to the ribs to give Moriarty two.

We take a break and come back with Shibata getting annoyed at Moriarty for daring to chop him. Shibata strikes away in the corner and hits a running dropkick for two. Moriarty is back up with an abdominal stretch until Shibata suplexes his way to freedom. Shibata kicks him down and hits the running PK for the pin at 10:41.

Rating: C. This was Shibata getting his win back and that’s fine enough, even if it was similar to everything you’ve seen Shibata do in the ring in AEW. Moriarty is probably the last important member of his team and it’s not going to mean much to have him lose to a legend. Maybe not the most interesting match but it was technically sound with Shibata overcoming the odds to win.

Post match Taylor jumps Shibata but Hook comes in for the save.

We look at Athena retaining the ROH Women’s Title over Hikaru Shida at Supercard Of Honor. At the same show, Athena’s minion Billie Starkz won the inaugural ROH Women’s TV Title.

Athena is ready to headline Battle Of The Belts and beat Red Velvet.

Roderick Strong brags about winning on his own and promises to do it again tonight over Rocky Romero.

Daniel Garcia vs. Angelico

Serpentico is here with Garcia. They go with a technical off to start and Garcia takes him down, only to not hit Angelico in the face. Angelico grabs a belly to back suplex but gets pulled into a Figure Four of all things. They trade rolling it over until Garcia starts kicking away at the knee to keep him down. Garcia fires off right hands in the corner and a Saito suplex sets up a kneebar to make Angelico tap at 5:47.

Rating: C+. They had another technical exchange here until Garcia started hitting him in the face over and over. The leg stuff was a good way to go as well as Garcia worked on in until he made Angelico tap with it. That being said, Garcia needs to actually win something at some point or these matches will stop mattering rather quickly.

Pac thanks Kazuchika Okada for accepting his challenge and for hitting him in the head with a big piece of metal. He’s ready for Okada at Dynasty.

Toni Storm vs. AZM

Non-title and Mariah May is here with Storm while Anna Jay is here with AZM. Storm poses a bit to start and shrugs off AZM’s running forearms. AZM gets smart by kicking at the feet and hits a running basement dropkick. Back up and Storm knocks her off the top, setting up a running hip attack to the floor. May and Jay fight to the back, with AZM using the distraction to hit a kick off the apron.

We take a break and come back with the exchange of forearms until AZM kicks her in the head for a double knockdown. A top rope double stomp gets two on Storm, who is right back with a sitout chokebomb for two of her own. Storm snaps off a nasty German suplex and grabs Storm Zero for the pin at 9:40.

Rating: C+. This was another match where it felt like part of a side story on the way to Storm’s title defense at Dynasty. Other than maybe a short mention, her opponent, Thunder Rosa, wasn’t brought up here. Instead it was focused on whatever weird stuff is going on with Storm and May while Storm is fighting someone making their in-ring debut around here. That’s a bit too much going on at once and it didn’t really make more interested in seeing Storm vs. Rosa.

Post match May brings in some champagne (apparently having murdered Jay off screen). Storm licks her face.

Red Velvet is ready to beat Athena.

Mark Briscoe is ready to bring the violence to the House Of Black at Dynasty. Then he seems to bark.

Here is Thunder Rosa, who thanks the fans for having her back throughout her comeback. She doesn’t need help to win the title and she’s talking about Deonna Purrazzo. Rosa graduated college and became an American citizen on her own but something died inside of her when she had to vacate the Women’s Title. Now she has another chance and will carry her friends and family with her. Toni Storm made the mistake of trying to erase the paint on her face so now she is coming for the title and to drag Storm to h***. This might be the best promo of Rosa’s career as she was bringing the fire the whole way.

Deonna Purrazzo is fine with not helping Thunder Rosa but she still wants Toni Storm away from the Women’s Title. If Rosa is dealing with one storm, Purrazzo will deal with the other Storm by breaking Mariah May’s arm next week.

The Young Bucks vs. FTR for the Tag Team Titles at Dynasty is now a ladder match. Well of course it is.

The Don Callis Family says they’re here to hurt Bryan Danielson before he faces Will Ospreay at Dynasty.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Don Callis Family

It’s a brawl to start with the fight heading to the floor at the bell. Danielson hits a running dropkick to Fletcher against the barricade before firing off the kicks. That means it’s a perfect time to thank Tony Khan for making a ladder match at Dynasty, which is interrupted by Danielson kicking Fletcher in the face again. Hobbs and Castagnoli slug it out in the ring as commentary talks about what’s coming next week.

Hobbs gets draped over the top rope for a knee from Danielson, who stomps down on the knees. Castagnoli comes back in and hammers away on Fletcher in the corner. A cheap shot from Hobbs cuts Castagnoli off though and we take a break. Back with Fletcher grabbing a sleeper on Castagnoli but he gutwrenches his way to freedom. It’s back to Danielson to moonsault over Fletcher for the running clothesline. A variety of kicks have the villains down but Hobbs pulls a dive out of the air.

That’s fine with Danielson, who hits a running knee off the apron. That leaves Castagnoli to drop Fletcher onto the barricade and knock Hobbs into the crowd. We take another break and come back with the ring mats being pulled back as the villains take over. Fletcher goes up top but a superplex attempt is broken up. Castagnoli breaks up what looked to be a Doomsday Device, leaving Danielson to hit a belly to back superplex for two.

Hobbs saves Fletcher from the LeBell Lock so Danielson dives over for the tag off to Castagnoli. House is quickly cleaned and there’s the Giant Swing to Hobbs. The Sharpshooter goes on, with Fletcher’s kicks to the chest not being enough to break it up. Instead Castagnoli lets go to hit Fletcher with Swiss Death, only to walk into the spinebuster to give Hobbs two.

Fletcher gets sent outside for a dive from Danielson, leaving Castagnoli to hit a Death Valley Driver for two of his own. Some clotheslines give Castagnoli two more but Fletcher grabs the ankle. The World’s Strongest Slam gives Hobbs two so he grabs a chair. Said chair is taken away so the announcers’ table is cleared off. Danielson isn’t having that and takes out Hobbs, leaving Castagnoli to Neutralize Fletcher for the pin at 25:44.

Rating: B+. To the shock of almost no one, taking four talented stars and giving them a lot of time made for a heck of a match. They know what they’re doing out there and put together a rather exciting match to close things out. At the same time, it would be nice to see the Family not lose every single big match they have. It doesn’t really make a big difference when the one person on the team who wins gets those wins by beating his stablemates. Either way, awesome main event here.

Post match Konosuke Takeshita runs in to help the Family with the beatdown. The fans chant for Moxley (the hometown, or at least close to it, boy) but they have to settle for Castagnoli chasing the villains off instead.

Overall Rating: B. This show illustrated a lot of the issues that AEW has. While the opener and main event, as in the matches with some of the bigger stars, were quite good, the stuff in the middle did not feel very important. A lot of this show felt like “here’s some stuff that we can throw out there to get us to Dynamite”. That’s fine every so often, but it feels like that is the case almost every week with Rampage and a good deal of the time with Collision. It would be nice to feel like something on here makes a big difference on the stories, but that is rarely the case for anything but Dynamite and the pay per views, which needs to be fixed.

Results
House Of Black b. Dante Martin/Matt Sydal/Action Andretti – Cannonball/running boots combination to Sydal
Katsuyori Shibata b. Lee Moriarty – PK
Daniel Garcia b. Angelico – Kneebar
Toni Storm b. AZM – Storm Zero
Blackpool Combat Club b. Don Callis Family – Neutralizer to Fletcher

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Rampage
Date: April 12, 2024
Location: Charleston Coliseum, Charleston, West Virginia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Chris Jericho

It’s another week around here and hopefully there will be less eight month old footage included. With a little over a week to go before Dynasty, there is only so much time left to build up the card, though thankfully most of the matches are made. Maybe we get something new this week so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Orange Cassidy vs. Alex Reynolds

John Silver is here with Reynolds. Silver and Reynolds hug at the start to mess with Cassidy, who is going through a best friend breakup. Cassidy knocks him outside and sends him into the steps, with Silver getting taken out as well. Reynolds heads back inside for a distraction, allowing Silver to grab a brainbuster onto the floor. Cassidy goes back in but gets sent outside again, only to come back in with a sunset flip for two.

Reynolds knocks him down again though and we take a break. Back with Cassidy Hulking Up and dropkicking him into the corner for the stomping. There’s a dive onto Silver but the distraction lets Reynolds grab a Cactus piledriver for two. A super Stunner (Whippersnapper for you old fans) connects for Reynolds but he dives onto Silver by mistake. Back in and Cassidy decks him with the Orange Punch for the pin at 10:35.

Rating: C+. This was built around the idea of Cassidy coming back to the ring after the big betrayal and it was pretty much a run of the mill match. Cassidy basically being up against two people makes sense as he’s on his own without his friend so the match made sense. Reynolds doesn’t get much time on his own in the ring so it was nice to see for a change, especially that Stunner.

Post match Cassidy is asked about Trent Beretta turning on him but here is Beretta to interrupt. Chuck Taylor pops up to scare Beretta off but leaves instead of siding with Cassidy either.

Anna Jay wants this place to be more serious. Stardom’s AZM comes in to say she doesn’t think much of Toni Storm.

TBS Title: Julia Hart vs. Leyla Hirsch

Hart is defending and Brody King is banned from ringside. Hirsch stats fast by sending her to the floor but Hart is right there with a forearm to the face from the outside. Back in and Hart chokes on the ropes before sending her into the buckle. Hirsch pulls her out of the air and then sends her outside, with Hart coming up holding her arm. Back in and Hart hits a quick kick into a small package to retain at 3:14.

Rating: C. That definitely felt like an injury at the end and that’s not a good thing. Hart was sent outside and they went home almost immediately. I’m not sure what’s going to happen if she’s hurt long term, but that was a nasty way to wrap up the show. Hirsch didn’t get a chance to showcase herself, though it is hard to fathom the match was supposed to go that fast and end that way.

Don Callis doesn’t care if his Family beats Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli tomorrow. Instead, he just wants Danielson hurt before he faces Will Ospreay at Dynasty.

Angelo Parker vs. Zak Knight

Saraya and Harley Cameron are here with Knight and Parker jumps him in the aisle before the bell. Knight slugs away on the floor and Parker is busted open. They get inside anyway and the bell rings but Parker is quickly knocked into the corner. We take an early break and come back with Parker hitting a running Blockbuster, setting up an implant DDT.

The women offer a distraction and are quickly ejected, allowing Knight to hit a quick powerbomb for two. Knight shouts that he’ll take good care of Ruby and that’s enough to fire Parker up for the comeback. Not that it matters as a running forearm finishes for Knight at 7:44.

Rating: C. I was wondering how they would give Parker the win over a beast like Knight and that was the answer: they didn’t do it. One of the next steps is a Ruby Soho getting back together with Parker to focus him for a rematch but that doesn’t feel likely fro here. Or they all just move on and pretend this never happened.

Kyle O’Reilly wants to face Rocky Romero, who says they can do it after he wins the International Title. Romero leaves and Roderick Strong comes in to seem unhappy with O’Reilly wanting the title. O’Reilly says it would be cool to be champ, but Strong says he can’t be International Champ.

Video on the Blackpool Combat Club vs. the Don Callis Family.

Jay White vs. Matt Sydal

The Gunns are here with White and yes this is the main event. They fight over control in the corner until Sydal kicks away at the leg. A kick to the leg and a spinning kick to the face have White down again, followed by a headscissors to send him outside. The Meteora off the apron drops White but he’s back up to drop Sydal face first onto the apron.

We take a break and come back with White holding him in a chinlock. Sydal fights up and hits a jumping knee to the face, followed by a question mark kick for two. A rollup gets two more but White is back with the swinging Rock Bottom. The Bladerunner is countered into a poisonrana but White is right back with the Bladerunner for the pin at 11:25.

Rating: C+. Unlike the previous match, this was a good enough match but it feels so meaningless. White is in a six man team while Sydal is a jobber to the stars. That doesn’t make for much of a main event but at least they had a nice match. Just find a way to make it feel more important next time.

Overall Rating: C. While the wrestling itself is fine, Rampage has turned into a chore to watch. The wrestling is fine but here you had Orange Cassidy beating a member of a comedy stable, a TBS Title match that wouldn’t have felt important even if Hart’s shoulder had been ok, the first match in a long running story and an ok main event. Nothing on here felt overly important and that makes for a pretty long hour of wrestling. If you really like AEW and anything it does you’ll have a good time, but otherwise it’s the most skippable show going today (yes, even more than Ring Of Honor).

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Alex Reynolds – Orange Punch
Julia Hart b. Leyla Hirsch – Small package
Zak Knight b. Angelo Parker – Running forearm
Jay White b. Matt Sydal – Bladerunner

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

(I’m sorry about the delay.  I came home from Philadelphia with a bad sinus infection and I more or less slipped into a coma after last night’s show and forgot to put it up.)

Dynamite
Date: April 10, 2024
Location: Charleston Coliseum, Charleston, West Virginia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

And now, we jump back to August of last year, because we are going to be seeing footage of the backstage incident between CM Punk and Jack Perry at All Out. This comes after Punk gave an interview that wasn’t so nice about AEW and now all of a sudden we just need to see the footage. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Samoa Joe vs. Dustin Rhodes

Non-title…and non-match as Swerve Strickland jumps Joe before the bell and spears him through a table. Referees break it up. Dustin never appeared.

We look at Trent Beretta turning on Orange Cassidy last week.

Cassidy will have a match on Rampage and will comment on what happened.

TNT Title: Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Adam Copeland

Copeland is defending. They shove each other around to start with Penta knocking him down and hitting a top rope double stomp for two. Copeland is knocked to the floor and gets chopped back inside as we take a break. Back with….what looks to be some production graphic on the screen before we see Copeland grabbing a headscissors. Penta isn’t having that and hits a basement superkick for two.

Copeland leapfrogs him three times in a row before they trade headscissors. Stereo big boots leave them both down and we actually get a countdown clock until the Young Bucks segment. Penta sends him outside for a dive and gets in some stomping as we take another break. Back again with Copeland knocking him off the top, giving them another double breather.

Penta goes for the arm but gets pulled into the Grindhouse, with Penta having to reach the rope. They go to the apron with Penta charging into a powerslam to put them both on the floor. Copeland loads up a spear but hits Alex Abrahantes and the fans are not pleased. Back in and Copeland takes him up top, only to get caught with a super Canadian Destroyer. Then Copeland hits the spear to retain at 20:42.

Rating: B. This was a longer match than I was expecting and it did fairly well. Copeland can have a good enough match with anyone and while Penta isn’t what he once was, he has that odd charisma that makes it work. For a match with no build due to it being another open challenge, this was good enough.

Post match the lights go out and Julia Hart pops in. Brody King appears to choke out Copeland but here is Willow Nightingale for a distracting save.

Chris Jericho, Hook and Katsuyori Shibata are ready for Shane Taylor Promotions. Jericho is ready for both of them to sit underneath his learning tree, with both of them agreeing. With Jericho gone, Shibata, through his translating machine, isn’t sure what’s going on, but he does like Renee Paquette’s necklace.

We look back at FTR vs. the Young Bucks over the years.

Mark Briscoe and Eddie Kingston are ready to team together at Dynasty despite being beaten up. Adam Copeland comes in and makes sure they’re good for next week. Stokely Hathaway and Willow Nightingale come in….with Stokely wanting Nightingale to get a TNT Title shot next week. Copeland thinks a mixed tag against the House of Black sounds better and Willow is in.

We go to the Young Bucks for footage from All In in London last year. Before we get there though, we talk about their history with FTR. With that out of the way, we hear about Jack Perry, the scapegoat, in the whole thing, being involved in a backstage altercation at All In. Perry is a friend of theirs, and the other, unnamed person is friends with FTR.

Maybe FTR was behind the whole thing to mess with them. They had no time to hydrate or even pray! There should be an asterisk next to FTR’s victory, but that’s not even the worst part. The incident is short and resembles a high school scrap but it threatened to take down their biggest show ever.

We see the (silent) footage of CM Punk coming up to Perry, who doesn’t look interested in talking to him. They do talk for a few seconds, Punk turns and says something to some other people (one of whom appears to be Tony Khan), then Punk shoves Perry, grabs him in a front facelock, and has it broken up. Punk does lunch in the direction of Khan, albeit with a desk and a person between them. The whole clip runs about 1:15 the time between Punk initially shoving him and the two being separated is about 8 seconds.

Back to the Bucks, who say that wasn’t even the worst part of the whole thing. The worst thing was creating a wrestling show and filling a building with that many people, only to lose because they were distracted by something so stupid. They aren’t shaking FTR’s hands at Dynasty.

Ok so regarding the footage:

If anyone, and I mean ANYONE, in AEW management, told Tony Khan that airing that on national television, or any kind of television for that matter, was a good idea, they should be tried on crimes against wrestling.

That was the most nothing, completely unmemorable moment that I’ve seen in wrestling in a long, long time. The time from Punk initially shoving him to them being separated was about eight seconds. We just waited eight months for a clip that lasted as long as Diesel beating Bob Backlund for the WWF Title in 1994.

I’m sure this will be part of some big return for Perry, but my goodness, an old, broken down Punk just grabbed him in a front facelock (which is as basic of a wrestling hold as there is so screw off with the “he’s a trained fighter” stuff) and held him for a few seconds. If that is some big, game changing and possibly show ruining moment, there are WAY more problems with your show and company than an army of Punk’s on their best behavior could ever fix.

Lanny Poffo told a story about a wrestler I can’t remember giving him crap in the locker room. They were in a match together and Poffo grabbed a sugar hold (a legitimate grappling move) and gave it the tiniest bit of pressure while asking if they were going to have any more problems. They were fine after that. But yeah, this was some game changer that had to be addressed EIGHT MONTHS LATER because Punk said something mean about AEW. Cry me a river.

We cut back to the desk and Tony Schiavone looks like he would rather having his teeth ripped out than be here right now.

Cue FTR, unscheduled, for a chat. Cash Wheeler wants to know why we’re doing this and what that was supposed to accomplish (preach it brother). We are doing some great things but why are we looking at stuff from eight months ago (PREACH IT BROTHER!)? Harwood thinks the Young Bucks might be on to something about how important they are because without them, Harwood might still be shaving Wheeler’s back.

The Bucks used to be about AEW but now they’re about the letters EVP. Harwood says on the backs of everyone who helps to work and build this place, they will keep this place going for the future of professional wrestlers. This place is for the people who go to work for one ticket to get lost in their drama and action. But this isn’t about All In, because it’s about Dynasty and proving who the best team really is.

Video on Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay.

Here is Will Ospreay for a chat. First up, there is this rumor going around that Ospreay is afraid of the grind of wrestling (meaning he’s afraid of the WWE schedule). Normally he would rise to this type of bate, but the person who said it is only in the position he’s in because he was grinding on the boss’ wife. With that flashback to 2004 out of the way, Ospreay talks about how Bryan Danielson is ready to try his hand at beating the unbeatable Ospreay. A lot of people have tried to do it and now he’s ready to show why he’s the best. On April 21, Danielson will find out why Ospreay was on another level.

Julia Hart is ready for Willow Nightingale at Dynasty.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Chris Jericho/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata

Jericho and Anthony Ogogo (who returned and joined the team over the weekend) start things off and it’s Moriarty coming in less than ten seconds later. Jericho takes over on Moriarty in the corner and hands it off to Shibata to strike away. Hook comes in to strike away at Taylor, who knocks him into the corner. We take a break and come back with Shibata coming in to clean house. Moriarty gets knocked into the corner but Shibata runs into Jericho by mistake. Hook and Jericho argue on the floor, leaving Taylor to knock Shibata silly with a right hand. Moriarty’s Fang finishes Shibata at 8:16.

Rating: C. If there is an interesting point coming up with this Hook/Jericho stuff, it would be nice if they got to it sooner rather than later. Hook and Jericho have teamed together twice or so and now they’re already having issues. I’m sure we’ll be seeing something between them in some form at Dynasty and my goodness it’s really hard to get interested at Jericho doing something like this again.

Post match Hook helps Shibata up and Jericho leaves by himself.

Samoa Joe is cleared for the main event and Dustin Rhodes is ready for him because he has nothing left.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Cristiano Argento

Non-title and Okada takes him down without much trouble. The dropkick and Rainmaker finish for Okada at 1:22.

Post match Okada accepts Pac’s challenge for Dynasty. Pac comes out for the staredown but the Young Bucks jump him from behind for the beating. FTR makes the save as the fans chant for CM PUNK. Okada grabs a chair and the good guys are beaten down.

We look at Bullet Club Gold beating down Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed at Supercard Of Honor.

The Club liked that beating and want to do it again on Rampage. Jay White says find him an opponent.

Here are Thunder Rosa and Toni Storm for a champagne toast. Storm immediately hits her with the glass and the beatdown is on, with Rosa’s paint being rubbed off. Deonna Purrazzo makes the save and Mariah May comes in…and she has a match right now. Storm even throws in a good luck kiss on the cheek.

Anna Jay vs. Mariah May

They slap and strike it out to start until Jay hits a running Blockbuster. May powers her straight into the corner and grabs a Stratusphere. Jay is back with a hanging neckbreaker over the apron (throwing in a kiss to the cheek) as we take a break. We come back with May hitting a running dropkick, followed by a running spinwheel kick in the corner. An Iconoclasm gives Jay two but she runs into a boot in the corner. A missile dropkick sets up May’s hip attack for two but Jay kicks her down for the same. May comes right back with a sunset flip for the pin at 8:32.

Rating: C. Well at least it feels like they’re getting ready for the May/Storm…whatever it is that they’re doing. May needs some more wins and Jay has enough credibility for it to matter. Other than that, it was a good enough match, though Jay still feels like she is in the same place in the ring as she has been for the last year plus.

Post match Jay grabs the Queenslayer until Stardom’s Mina Shirakawa (who had a reunion with former stablemate May at a Stardom event over the weekend, with Storm interrupting and teasing a Forbidden Door match with Shirakawa) makes the save. Then Shirakawa gives May champagne and kisses her.

Mercedes Mone is ready to debut at Double Or Nothing. She talks about her ankle injury but has a plan and a mission…and then someone turns the lights out and attacks her.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Samoa Joe

Non-title and Dustin jumps the banged up Joe in the corner. Joe fights back and hits a hard headbutt to knock Rhodes outside. Rhodes is busted open so Joe hammers on the cut as we take a break. Back with the rather bloody Dustin snapping off a powerslam for a breather. Dustin hammers away and grabs a Code Red for two but the bulldog is broken up.

They go outside with Joe getting posted, allowing Dustin to grab the title. With that taken away, Dustin grabs the Cross Rhodes for two but Joe release Rock Bottoms him out of the corner. Joe grabs the chain and loads up a swing but the referee takes it away. That leaves Joe to hit him with the belt for the pin at 9:34.

Rating: C+. Good enough here, though it’s another match with the break taking up a good chunk of the time. It’s very much going with the idea of a Rhodes vs. a Samoan, but at least it’s a good ways off from a bearded guy like Eric Young winning the TNA World Title a week after Daniel Bryan’s Wrestlemania XXX moment. Perfectly fine match, with Joe getting to be all violent, which tends to be his best stuff.

Post match Joe grabs the Koquina Clutch but Swerve Strickland runs in to knock Joe out. Swerve holds up the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. I don’t have the first clue what to think of this show. The wrestling ranged from fine to good with the opener being fun and the main event being a Samoa Joe special. Throw in Okada wrecking someone and whatever the women are doing (and I’m not entirely sure but it feels Forbidden Doorish) and that stuff was good enough.

And unfortunately, a grand total of none of that is going to be remembered by the masses, as this was ALL about the special footage thing. While they tied it into the FTR vs. Bucks match, it’s pretty clear there is at least one ulterior motive here and that isn’t going to make for the best reception. At worst, it feels petty on AEW’s part and at best, it’s another situation where whatever bump they might get is going to be buried underneath the various negative perceptions. I have no idea how that was the best possible outcome but it’s already out there, and hopefully that’s the last of it.

Results
Adam Copeland b. Penta El Zero Miedo – Spear
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Chris Jericho/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata – Fang to Shibata
Kazuchika Okada b. Cristiano Argento – Rainmaker
Mariah May b. Anna Jay – Sunset flip
Samoa Joe b. Dustin Rhodes – Belt shot

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Collision
Date: April 6, 2024
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We are on a delay this week with the show airing at 11:30pm due to the NCAA Final Four and (unofficially) Wrestlemania. That is a good move from AEW as there is little reason to run the show at the normal time against that kind of competition. The big feature this week is FTR vs. Top Flight for the shot against the Young Bucks for the Tag Team Titles at Dynasty. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: FTR vs. Top Flight

Wheeler and Darius trade arm control to start until Wheeler grabs a backslide for two. Dante comes in for a kick to the back and FTR needs a breather on the floor. Back in and FTR take over on Darius, with Wheeler chopping him into the corner. Dante comes back in for a rollup into a middle rope crossbody for two before taking Harwood into the wrong corner.

Something close to Poetry In Motion knocks Harwood outside as commentary talks about Trent Beretta turning on Orange Cassidy. Harwood gets smart by tricking Wheeler outside for a cheap shot from Wheeler as we take a break. Dante reversing a superplex into a crossbody for two and handing it back to Darius.

A crucifix gets two on Harwood and everything breaks down with a dive taking Wheeler out on the floor. Darius’ springboard cutter gets two on Harwood but raised knees cut off a frog splash attempt. Darius is back up with a high crossbody for two so Wheeler sends Dante outside. That leaves Darius to go up and dive into a Shatter Machine for the pin at 15:40.

Rating: B. Good match as FTR continues to be the team that lures their opponents in to catch them in the end. That’s exactly what happened here, with Darius going for one too many high risks moves and got caught in the Shatter Machine. Now it’s on to Dynasty, where the Bucks will likely get their win back so they can get the titles again as more fans change the channel.

Video on Kazuchika Okada.

Pac vs. Encore Moore

Pac starts fast and whips him hard into the corner so the stomping can ensue. Some rolling suplexes have Moore down again and the Brutalizer finishes at 2:24.

Post match Pac challenges Kazuchika Okada.

Bryan Danielson talks about wanting to be the best version of himself and that needs to be the case against Will Ospreay. He is excited to test himself because someone was with Danielson and said Ospreay might be the best wrestler ever. The build makes sense but it’s not quite hooking me in.

Hook/Chris Jericho vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Jericho and Taylor start things off with Taylor easily punching him into the corner. Jericho as to cover up but manages a shot to the face, followed by a double suplex to put Taylor down. Hook stays in and gets taken into the wrong corner, only to fight right back out. It’s back to Jericho who tries the Walls on Moriarty but has to dropkick Taylor down instead.

We take a break and come back with Jericho knocking Moriarty down for the Lionsault. The tag brings Hook back in to clean house but he can’t suplex Taylor. Moriarty pulls Jericho into the Border City Stretch, which is reversed into the Walls. Hook manages the t-bone on Taylor, leaving Moriarty to tap at 8:55.

Rating: C+. The match wasn’t bad and Jericho/Hook worked well enough together but it’s really not that interesting to see them together. It feels like Jericho’s latest project and those have been hit and miss at best. Maybe it will work out, but I could go for a long break from Jericho and now it seems we’ll be seeing him doing this for awhile.

Post match Anthony Ogogo of all people comes in to lay out Jericho and Hook before joining Shane Taylor Promotions. For those of you wondering, the answer to “how long has he been gone” is “his last (non-dark) match for AEW was in August 2022.”

Dustin Rhodes wants to show he can still do it so he wants Samoa Joe for the World Title on Dynamite.

Will Ospreay is ready to face Bryan Danielson at Dynamite. No word on why Renee Paquette changed her clothes since she talked to Danielson.

House Of Black vs. Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal/Bryan Keith

Black headlocks Keith to start before firing off the kicks. King comes in so Sydal wants Keith’s help against him. That’s fine with King, who wrecks them both and knocks Daniels down as we take a break. Back with Sydal coming in to clean house, including a very spinning headscissors to Matthews.

A jumping knee to the face gets two on Matthews but he’s back up with a knee of his own. Dante’s Inferno hits Sydal and Keith gets run over as well. A triple kick to the head in the corner hits Keith but Daniels makes the save. The End drops Daniels and Matthews’ swinging pumphandle slam finishes at 9:26.

Rating: C. Good enough here but it was a long match before the only realistic result. The House is setting up for a big match and needed a warmup like this one, which went well enough. At the end of the day, Daniels being on a team more or less guarantees he’s going to lose, which makes a nearly ten minute match feel that much longer.

Post match here is Adam Copeland from behind to go after the House but he has a staredown with Black. That lets the House beat him down but Mark Briscoe and FTR run in for the save. Cue the Young Bucks to brawl with FTR, leaving the good guys to stand tall.

Rocky Romero wants an eliminator match against Roderick Strong. Cue the Undisputed Kingdom with Strong granting the match.

The Young Bucks are going to present backstage footage from All In on Dynamite. In theory that would be the CM Punk/Jack Perry footage and if so…why?

Chris Jericho wants to fight Shane Taylor Promotions and Hook presents Katsuyori Shibata to even things up. Shibata continues his translator program for promos.

Yuka Sakazaki vs. Trish Adora

This is Adora’s reward for losing to Serena Deeb. Adora grabs a headlock to start and takes Sakazaki down, with Sakazaki nipping right back up. A Boss Man Slam onto the knee puts Sakazaki down again and we take a break. Back with Adora grabbing a not great looking Crossface but Sakazaki is right next to the ropes.

Sakazaki pounds on Adora’s back but can’t manages a suplex. Some forearms put Adora down again and Sakazaki drops her with a suplex. That takes enough out of Sakazaki that Adora is back up with a suplex of her own for two. A spinning hammerlock slam drops Adora again and a top rope splash finishes for Sakazaki at 8:34.

Rating: C. Sakazaki has been gone from AEW for over a year and this didn’t exactly have me wanting to see her around more frequently. It was just a match for the most part with neither showing off anything special. Odds are Sakazaki is just here for a quick appearance and hopefully she picks it up a bit as this didn’t exactly blow any doors off.

Post match Serena Deeb comes out to stare down Sakazaki.

Matt Menard praises Daniel Garcia but says he wants more. Garcia wants to move up the ladder.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. The Butcher

They fight over the power lockup to start before an exchange of shoulders doesn’t go anywhere. A flying shoulder works a bit better for Castagnoli but Butcher is back with a backbreaker. The chinlock doesn’t last long for Butcher as Castagnoli fights up, setting off an exchange of forearms. Castagnoli muscles him up for a Death Valley Driver and fires off the uppercuts in the corner. The Swing sets up the Neutralizer to finish Butcher off at 5:04.

Rating: C+. Rather basic power match here but it’s always fun to see Castagnoli throwing someone around like that. This should set up whatever is next for the Club, as they need a big feud again. If nothing else, maybe Castagnoli gets to do something on his own for a change, as it tends to go fairly well.

Julia Hart is ready for Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Mone later.

Samoa Joe is down to face Dustin Rhodes, but we’ll make it non-title.

Komander vs. Penta El Zero Miedo

Penta kicks away to start but gets rolled up for an early two. Stereo nip ups give us a staredown before Komander snaps off a hurricanrana. Back up and Penta kicks him in the ribs but another hurricanrana sends him outside. Komander’s dive is countered with a gorilla press (not bad) and it’s time to strut as we take a break.

We come back with Komander headscissoring him to the floor, setting up a more successful dive. Penta is right back with with a Canadian Destroyer for two, only to have Komander pull him into something like a half crab. With that broken up, Komander plants him with a Spanish Fly but Penta plants him right back with a springboard Canadian Destroyer onto the apron.

Back in and they slug it out from their knees until Penta grabs Made In Japan for two. Komander blocks a superplex and runs the corner for a twisting top rope splash. Cielito Lindo is loaded up but Penta reverses into a Codebreaker, setting up the Fear Factor for the win at 14:12.

Rating: B-. At the end of the day, you just have to accept that they are just not going to sell that much. It’s about hitting one big, flashy move after another until someone hits their finisher and win. That makes for a fun, junk food kind of match but there is only so much for it otherwise. For now though, Penta gets a nice boost on the way towards his title match on Dynamite and that’s all it needed to be.

Adam Copeland comes out for the staredown with Penta before their TNT Title match on Dynamite.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was in a really rough spot as there is only so much you can do with a show airing around midnight on Wrestlemania Saturday (with the two shows overlapping for a bit). The other problem is that after the opener and maybe the Hook/Jericho match, a grand total of nothing here felt like it mattered in the slightest. That being said, the wrestling was either good or perfectly acceptable, assuming you ignore how unimportant a lot of it felt. That was all they should have done with this show though, as the time slot is making this little more than a punt.

Results

FTR b. Top Flight – Shatter Machine to Darius

Hook/Chris Jericho b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Walls Of Jericho to Moriarty

House Of Black b. Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal/Bryan Keith – Swinging pumphandle slam to Daniels

Yuka Sakazaki b. Trish Adora – Top rope splash

Claudio Castagnoli b. The Butcher – Neutralizer

Penta El Zero Miedo b. Komander – Fear Factor

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Rampage
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Budweiser Gardens, London, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness, Ian Riccaboni

We have another odd variety pack this week with Christopher Daniels vs. Malakai Black and a four way elimination match just for the heck of it. That almost makes things sound like Ring Of Honor more than Rampage but this show is almost lacking in its own identity a good chunk of the time. In a way that’s nice to have so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Malakai Black vs. Christopher Daniels

Buddy Matthews is here with Black. They start slowly until Black hits some running shoulders into a headlock takeover but Daniels is back with an armbar. That’s broken up and Daniels gets kicked into the corner where he seems to be a bit unconscious. Daniels is sent outside so Matthews sends him back inside for two.

An elbow to the face gives Black two and some kicks drop Daniels again as we take a break. Back with Daniels going on a run with a Downward Spiral into an STO, followed by a Death Valley Driver for two. Angel’s Wings is blocked and Black kicks him in the head for two more. Daniels grabs a rollup for two more but Black hits the End for the pin at 8:14.

Rating: C+. This was all it needed to be as Daniels put up a fight but got taken out by the monster threat. Daniels is still perfect for doing his thing out there and helping make someone look good in the process. That’s what happened with Black here, who snapped off a kick to the face when he got tired of dealing with Daniels. Perfectly fine match here.

Roderick Strong vs. London Lightning

Non-title and the Kingdom is here with Strong. Before the match, Strong has Lightning introduce himself but isn’t sure why he is named after such a nothing city. The bell rings and we hear about Lightning’s time teaming with Toronto Thunder (Ian: “I almost want to put that into Cagematch.”).

Lightning fights out of a headlock and hits a jumping knee to quite the reaction. The comeback is cut off with a backbreaker to give Strong two and we hit the reverse chinlock. Lightning gets up again and strikes away, setting up a suplex that has Nigel confused. Hold on though as Lightning has to go after Matt Taven but here is Wardlow to take Lightning out. The Cloverleaf finishes for Strong at 5:38.

Rating: C. This was fun and that’s the best word for it. Lightning was never going to be a serious threat but they played into the idea of the fans getting into what they were seeing here. Lightning has put in some good performances on Ring Of Honor and it wouldn’t stun me to see him used as a regular jobber going forward.

Leyla Hirsch has been doing her thing in Ring Of Honor and now she wants Julia Hart.

Serena Deeb vs. Trish Adora

Deeb goes after the leg to start before tying Adora up in a Paradise Lock. The running dropkick breaks it up and Adora isn’t pleased. Adora fights up and sends her hard into the corner as we take a break. Back with Deeb grabbing a neckbreaker over the top rope but Adora gets a boot up in the corner. A dragon screw legwhip across the rope cuts Adora down again but she counters another into a rollup for two. Adora gets two off a full nelson bomb and an exchange of clotheslines goes badly for Deeb. Not that it matters as she goes after the knee again and grabs the Serenity Lock for the tap at 9:56.

Rating: C+. Another perfectly nice match here that doesn’t feel like it means much for either of them. Deeb has felt like someone who could be pushed for a long time but it hasn’t happened in a good while. At the same time, Adora is someone who could be a bigger deal but is firmly in the jobber to the stars role at the moment. Good enough stuff, but it is on Rampage for a reason.

Julia Hart is down to face Leyla Hirsch.

Saraya and company are sick of Ruby Soho, with Zak Knight promising to hurt Angelo Parker. Is there an established reason for why exactly Saraya hates the relationship?

Daniel Garcia vs. Bryan Keith vs. Action Andretti vs. Komander

Elimination rules and Matt Menard is on commentary. As this is designed to tie into the NCAA Final Four. Andretti and Komander are left in the ring as we hear about Trish Adora (as in the loser of the match) getting a special match on Collision due to her amazing performance. Keith is back in to break up a cover on Andretti, which has commentary confused.

Garcia hammers on Keith in the corner until he has to punch Andretti out of the air. Keith elbows Garcia in the head for two before cutting Komander off on top to save Garcia. That’s enough for Komander to roll Keith up for the pin at 4:03. We take a break and come back with Andretti hitting a Death Valley Driver to drop Garcia on the apron. Komander hits a dive of his own to take them both out in a big crash. Andretti is fine enough to grab his torture neckbreaker to get rid of Komander at 9:03.

Garcia is back in to take out the knee but Andretti grabs a backbreaker into a neckbreaker. The running shooting star press is countered into an ankle lock but Andretti rolls him to the floor. A one legged dive to the floor hits Garcia again and a top rope clothesline takes him down again inside. The knee gives out on the torture rack attempt though and they slug it out. Andretti manages a Falcon Arrow for two but Garcia pulls him into a kneebar for the tap at 14:30.

Rating: B-. They got going a bit more near the end but it’s another match that could not feel less important. You had Garcia beating three lower card guys in a bunch of combinations that we have probably seen several times. The elimination rules helped a bit but Garcia is right where he was coming into this, much like every other winner on this show.

Overall Rating: C. This felt like a Ring Of Honor show and I do not mean that in a good way. It’s another case where the action itself is fine but my goodness they did not do themselves any favors with the show’s setup. It was more or less a bunch of matches to give midcard stars a win and that makes for a long hour. It’s a total nothing show and if this is all Rampage is going to be, just cancel it already or move it to YouTube where it belongs.

Results
Malakai Black b. Christopher Daniels – The End
Roderick Strong b. London Lightning – Cloverleaf
Serena Deeb b. Trish Adora – Serenity Lock
Daniel Garcia b. Komander, Action Andretti and Bryan Keith last eliminating Andretti

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: April 3, 2024
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Dynasty and that means it is time to start hammering home the card. First up we are likely set for Swerve Strickland challenging Samoa Joe for the AEW World Title. In addition, Will Ospreay will face Bryan Danielson in a dream match, but first Ospreay has to face Will. Hobbs that is. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Adam Copeland to get things going. He’s here to have some fun and, after some microphone feedback (Copeland: “Live TV baby!”), he talks about all of the run he has had over the years. Copeland watched all kinds of wrestling in his life, including the WWF, the NWA, places in Canada and everywhere else and now he’s here where he sees the best roster he can imagine.

There are all kinds of wrestlers he can face for the first time ever and he has never had more fun in his career. AEW has pushed this industry into a better place and it gives more people a chance to do what they have never done before. This is where the best wrestle and now he’s calming down after getting fired up. Now it is time to move forward and there is a reason so many stars came here. For now, Copeland introduces Will Ospreay and some respect is shown. This was a rather nice rah-rah speech and Copeland knows how to give them as well as anyone.

Will Ospreay vs. Powerhouse Hobbs

Don Callis is on commentary as Hobbs knocks Hobbs out of the air to start. Ospreay gets smart by going after the knee and knocks him to the floor before hitting a dive. Hobbs is sent into the steps but he catches Ospreay on the barricade and plants him onto the steps. There’s the toss over the announcers’ table to drop Ospreay again and we take a break.

Back with Ospreay dropping Hobbs off a handspring kick to the face before going up. Hobbs pulls him down by the throat but a Stundog Millionaire gets Ospreay out of trouble again. Hobbs gets in another knockdown but misses a splash off the top of all things. The Hidden Blade is countered into a World’s Strongest Slam, which is countered into a small package to give Ospreay two.

Hobbs blasts him with a clothesline to take over, setting up a middle rope swinging powerslam (that was cool) for two more. Another powerslam attempt is countered into a DDT and a sky twister press puts Hobbs down again. The Hidden Blade finishes for Ospreay at 14:15.

Rating: B. Ospreay’s run continues and I liked this one more than some of the other things he’s done so far. It felt more like Ospreay was fighting up against the monster Hobbs before slaying the beast in the end. At the same time, it should be about it for his stuff with the Callis Family, which has been done pretty much to death so far. Good stuff here, and the shorter time helped it a bit.

Post match Callis has to break up Ospreay and Hobbs before Ospreay goes to leave. Cue Bryan Danielson for a staredown as we take a break.

Bryan Danielson vs. Lance Archer

Archer starts fast and takes over by knocking Danielson down. Danielson gets sent into the corner but avoids a charge, setting up a dragon screw legwhip. Cranking on and kicking at the leg have Archer in more trouble, followed by a running dropkick to the leg in the corner. They go outside, with Archer running Danielson over and slamming a production worker onto him for an impressive spot.

We take a break and come back with Danielson moonsaulting over him but getting run over with a crossbody. Danielson fights out of the corner and scores with some running dropkicks. Archer slips out of the LeBell Lock and bails outside, where Danielson hits a running knee off the apron.

Back in and Danielson hits a missile dropkick, followed by the YES Kicks. Archer doesn’t care for that and hits a hard chokeslam, only to have the Blackout broken up with elbows to the face. Danielson’s sleeper is broken up so Danielson kicks him in the head three straight times. The running knee finishes Archer at 15:38.

Rating: B-. This was the latest instance of Danielson having a good match around to keep up with Ospreay. If nothing else I do like the idea of having Danielson face someone different than Ospreay as it adds a fresh direction. It’s always fun watching Danielson strike down a monster and Archer has enough credibility to make Danielson seem like a big deal here so well done.

Here is Chris Jericho on the stage to call out Hook so hit that signal. Cue Hook, with Jericho praising him and asking Hook to believe in him. Hook does, to the point where they can team together this week on Collision. Works for Jericho.

Shane Taylor Promotions are ready to face Hook and Jericho on Collision.

Jay White vs. Billy Gunn

Gunn jumps White on the stage during his entrance and the beating begins around ringside. They get inside, the bell rings, and White punches him out to the floor. The fight heads into the crowd as White can’t get anything going to start. White gets knocked back to ringside but avoids a superkick, which hits the steps instead. A clothesline puts White on the floor again though and we take a break.

Back with White unloading in the corner but Gunn runs him over again. We see the Acclaimed down in the back, with the distraction letting White set up the Blade Runner. The One And Only connects instead and Gunn grabs a chair. Cue the Gunns to beg for mercy though, allowing White to hit a low blow for the DQ at 11:39.

Rating: D+. I’m not sure what this was but I think we can safely call it a bad miss. This was barely a match until the last minute and a half and then they went to a DQ (which is becoming more common around here). I’m liking the idea of the titles being unified, but this was really not a good way to help get us there. The fact that I had to pause this a few times out of pure boredom isn’t a good sign and it just got less interesting as it kept going.

Post match the beatdown is on until the Acclaimed make the save. The Gunns save White from going through the announcers’ table.

Willow Nightingale, with Stokely Hathaway and Kris Statlander, is feeling mother fluffin great about getting a TBS Title shot and talks about how she worked hard in this town for years. This is a home away from home for her and if she can be convinced she belongs here, anyone can do it. Now she’s ready to win the TBS Title and she thanks the fans for their love and support. Hathaway is proud of Willow’s win but here is Mercedes Mone to interrupt. She wants the winner of Willow and Hart, because money changes everything. Then Mone dances.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta vs. Young Bucks

Chuck Taylor and Sue are here with Cassidy and Beretta. Matt gets suplexed down to start but he’s back with the rolling northern lights suplex for two. The Bucks are sent to the floor where they trip Beretta down to take over. Matt even jumps on commentary to send us to a break. Back with Cassidy hitting a high crossbody but his double hurricanrana is blocked. Matt’s ram into an exposed turnbuckle is blocked but Cassidy gets knocked down anyway.

The EVP Trigger misses though and Cassidy’s top rope DDT gets two on Matt. Cassidy and Beretta hit their own TK river and it’s Soul Food into the half and half suplex to send Matt flying. Back up and Matt fires off some superkicks but stops to threaten Sue, who slaps him instead. The spike Strong Zero gets two on Matt with Nick making the save. Sue gives Trent the reviving kiss on the cheek….but Matt sends him into the exposed buckle. A rollup with tights pins Beretta at 12:28.

Rating: C+ This got some time but it never quite moved up to the higher level I was expecting. Cassidy and Beretta were a thrown together team but they did well in their limited time in the role. The Bucks have been all but penciled in for the finals since the tournament started so this was almost a formality, Not a bad match, but it seemed more built around Sue near the end and that’s not quite how a chance for a title shot should feel.

Post match the Bucks mock Sue before leaving. Beretta loads up the Big Hug but gives Cassidy a running knee instead. Chuck Taylor isn’t sure what to think as Beretta leaves. I haven’t been a big fan of the Best Friends stuff but this will be a big deal to a large portion of the AEW audience. Also more Beretta is a good thing.

Mariah May vs. Thunder Rosa

Toni Storm is on commentary and the winner gets the Dynasty title shot. Rosa chops away in the corner to start but May takes over and hits the running hip attack. Back up and Rosa hits a spinning faceplant before knocking May hard to the floor. May wins a strike out on the apron but gets hurricanranaed onto the floor. We take a break and come back with May striking away, followed by a Saito suplex. A Stratusphere is blocked so May hits a running knee for two instead. May Day is loaded up but Rosa reverses into a Backstabber, setting up the Tijuana Bomb for the pin at 7:48.

Rating: C+. They didn’t give Rosa much until she won in the end, though that’s what matters more than anything else. Rosa does need her title shot after never being defeated for the title and the ending should have May in some hot water with Storm. They might not have taken the most interesting route to get there but they got the title shot right, which is all that matters.

Penta El Zero Miedo wants a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland next week on Dynamite.

Penta El Zero Miedo receives a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland next week on Dynamite.

Here are Swerve Strickland and Samoa Joe for the contract signing for Dynasty. Joe signs without saying anything but then warns Swerve before he can sign as well. He has been watching Swerve’s rise to the top but Swerve has received some bad information, saying that he’s going to win the World Title. Joe threatens violence and gives Swerve a chance to walk, but instead Swerve says he has wanted this moment his entire life.

Swerve has worked to get here and he’ll do anything to win the title. At Dynasty, he’s going to show that he’s every bit of the man Joe is. The fight is on but Joe breaks up a chain shot and chases Swerve off. The beatdown leaves Swerve down in the corner. Joe leaves but a bloody Swerve laughs and crawls over to sign the contract in his own blood. That’s fine with Joe, who comes back in to put Swerve through the table to end the show. Joe being freaked out by Swerve crawling to the contract was good, and it was entirely logical for Joe to come back and beat him up again.

Overall Rating: B-. This show had a bit of a different feel to it as it came off more focused on a few things than on several things at once. At the same time, they helped set things up for the next few weeks, including Dynasty. The action (save for Gunn vs. White) was good and it made for a pretty solid show all around. Nice show, and points for making it feel a bit different.

Results
Will Ospreay b. Powerhouse Hobbs – Hidden Blade
Bryan Danielson b. Lance Archer – Running knee
Billy Gunn b. Jay White via DQ when White hit Gunn low
Young Bucks b. Trent Beretta/Orange Cassidy – Rollup with tights to Beretta,
Thunder Rosa b. Mariah May – Tijuana Bomb

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