Dynamite
Date: May 11, 2022
Location: UBS Arena, Belmont Park, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

We’re back on Long Island this week and that means it’s going to be a bit of a Bizarro World situation. CM Punk is getting to face Long Island’s own John Silver, but the big story is MJF getting to name the stipulations for his match against Wardlow with Wardlow’s freedom on the line. If nothing else, it should be fun to hear MJF get that kind of a hero’s welcome. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Owen Hart Foundation First Round: Adam Cole vs. Dax Harwood

Harwood starts fast with some shots to the face but gets kneed in the ribs to cut him down. That means Cole can start to pose a bit as he stomps Harwood down even more. Harwood gets sent ribs first into the post and it’s time to go outside. Cole sends him into various other things, including HARD into the post as we take a break.

Back with Harwood getting sent chest first into the buckle. Harwood is fine enough to hang in a slugout and grab a slingshot powerbomb for two of his own. A rollup gives Harwood two but the kickout sends him into the corner, only to have him come out with a spinning crossbody out of the corner. Cole is back with a superkick but Harwood rolls him up for two more.

The Panama Sunrise is blocked so Cole goes with a kick to the face and another Panama Sunrise attempt is countered, setting up a piledriver for two. With that not working, Harwood grabs the Sharpshooter but Cole kicks him off and out to the floor. That’s good for a nine count so Cole grabs his own Sharpshooter back inside. Harwood tries to bridge out but finally collapses and taps at 15:34.

Rating: B. I don’t think there was any real doubt about the winner here and that is not a bad thing. Harwood made Cole work here but ultimately fell in the end. The last few months have been a great showcase of FTR and it is great to see Harwood getting a moment to shine here on his own. Cole is a much bigger singles star and a real threat to win the tournament so this was a very nice way to use Harwood, even if he had no real chance of winning.

Video on Darby Allin vs. Jeff Hardy. They know each other and Allin has asked Tony Khan to relax the rules so they can be insane like they want to be.

CM Punk vs. John Silver

Hangman Page is on commentary. Punk, in a New York Islanders jersey, has his music stopped so the fans can boo him even more. Feeling out process to start with Silver running him over with a shoulder. Punk’s hiptoss is countered into a backslide for two but he gets in a shot of his own and we take a break.

Back with Silver firing off some kicks, including a low superkick into a brainbuster for two. Silver slips a bit in the corner but still manages a tornado DDT for another near fall. A running leg lariat gives Punk a needed breather and he goes to the apron, but stops to stare at Page. Punk hits a not very good Buckshot Lariat for the pin at 8:06.

Rating: C+. This was a similar story as the first match and that is something that works well. Punk vs. Page is starting to feel bigger and while they are going to have their work cut out for them, it is something they can pull off. That being said, Punk might need to stick to the GTS as that lariat wasn’t exactly great to see.

Post match Page storms to the ring and gets in Punk’s face. Punk talks about how the title is just business to him and this isn’t personal. Every morning, Punk would wake up and ask if he was a good guy. Now he is waking up to ask if he is the champ and yeah he thinks he is. At Double Or Nothing, Punk is winning the title and Page is going to shake his hand whether he is conscious or unconscious. Punk extends his hand but gets flipped off as Page leaves.

Britt Baker doesn’t care about who she is facing in the Owen Hart Tournament but she knows that Jamie Hayter is going to win. Tonight, the Toni Storm is going to pass. Oh and Baker is cool with facing Hayter in the semifinals.

Danhausen vs. Tony Nese

Danhausen loads up the curse but Nese sends him into the corner and hits the Running Nese for the pin at 32 seconds. It makes sense. There is nothing to suggest Danhausen is anything more than a joke so treat him as such.

Post match Nese hits another running knee and loads up another but here is Hook for the save. Nese runs off so Danhausen extends a hand to Hook, who shakes it, much to Danhausen’s shock.

We get a promo for the next season of Dark Side Of The Ring, as narrated by Chris Jericho, about an upcoming episode on MJF vs. Wardlow. Hold on though as Jericho says he doesn’t want to narrate something from MJF….but then he finds out how much he is being paid. This turns into a video about their history, with Taz not wanting to talk about Wardlow and Barry Horowitz talking about how much of a jobber Wardlow really is. Awesome, as usual with this stuff.

It’s time for the contract signing between MJF and Wardlow, with Wardlow coming to the ring in handcuffs and MJF sporting an Islanders jersey, allowing him to soak in even more cheers. MJF goes on about the greatness that is Long Island and explains the story, even for the fans in the cheap seats (MJF: “You’re poor but you’re still beautiful.”). He also doesn’t want the fans to boo Wardlow (with some very massive winking going on) and oddly enough, Wardlow is booed out of the building.

With that out of the way, it’s time to talk about the conditions, because it is time for Wardlow to pay for everything he did to Cody Rhodes. MJF again hints that he’s leaving in 2024 before saying at Double Or Nothing, he is going to whip Wardlow not one, two, etc etc, nine or…..hey Shawn Spears, how many times is he going to whip Wardlow? Anyway, if Wardlow is going to get his match, he has to beat Spears in a cage.

Wardlow REALLY likes that idea, until MJF says he’ll be the special referee. If Wardlow survives there, he can get his match at Double Or Nothing, but if he loses there, he can NEVER sign with AEW. Wardlow tries to sign but can’t with the handcuffs….so MJF says take them off. Spears and Mark Sterling point out that this is a REALLY BAD IDEA but the cuffs come off anyway.

Wardlow signs but doesn’t want the cuffs put back on. Security is taken out (with MJF hiding behind Spears) and Spears is taken out, leaving Sterling to save MJF from the Powerbomb Symphony. Then Sterling is put through the table instead. Commentary says MJF vs. Wardlow is set for Double Or Nothing, and I think it’s the whipping, the cage match and MJF vs. Wardlow all at the pay per view. Or maybe not as it’s kind of unclear. It seems that Wardlow has to get through the other stages first and then gets MJF, but their wording could have been a lot better here.

Video on Samoa Joe vs. Jay Lethal/Sonjay Dutt/Satnam Singh.

FTW World Title: Ricky Starks vs. Jungle Boy

Starks is defending. They go a bit technical to start with neither being able to get anywhere until Jungle Boy blocks a right hand. Starks gets dropkicked out to the floor and we take a break. Back with Jungle Boy hitting a rebound lariat but Starks knocks him back as well. Roshambo is blocked and Jungle Boy hits a superkick for two.

As JR goes on some weird tangent about Taz having a special guest at Thanksgiving (apparently he means Danhausen, which had nothing to do with anything going on at the moment), Jungle Boy gets the Snare Trap but Starks is in the ropes. Starks tries to leave but here is Swerve Strickland to cut him off. That means the referee doesn’t see Jungle Boy roll Starks up. Once the referee is back though, the Roshambo can retain the title at 10:01.

Rating: C+. Jungle Boy gets protected in the loss but it’s still weird to see him get pinned. This would seem to set up something between Strickland/Keith Lee and the Jurassic Express, even though Team Taz is right there. That’s the calling card of a triple threat and in this case, it makes enough sense. Starks and Jungle Boy had the perfectly good match you would expect them to have too so this was completely watchable.

Post match Christian Cage and Luchasaurus come out to check on Jungle Boy and don’t look happy with Swerve. Cue Keith Lee and it’s a three way staredown, also involving Team Taz.

Here is the Jericho Appreciation Society for a victory speech, though commentary isn’t sure what victory they’re talking about. Matt Menard talks about how excited being on this team makes him before it’s off to Jericho, who says he was glad to get out of this dump. He’s the Wizard and throws fireballs in people’s faces, including Eddie Kingston.

Hold on though as Kingston needs to stay home because he needs to keep his wife happy. If Kingston can’t, call Jericho and he’ll take care of it. Daniel Garcia talks about how sports entertainers always beat wrestlers, and it’s Jon Moxley interrupting. Jericho tells him to go on another hiatus but here are Bryan Danielson, Wheeler Yuta and William Regal.

That isn’t enough to even things up, so here are Santana/Ortiz/Eddie Kingston to start the real brawl. House is cleaned and even Regal gets in a shot on Jericho. The villains flee, as I wonder when they installed the invisible wall that is keeping the good guys from going after Jericho and company. That’s quite the one sided match on paper, but I’ll take this over the BCC crushing more and more jobbers.

Video on Thunder Rosa vs. Serena Deeb.

Owen Hart Foundation Tournament First Round: Toni Storm vs. Jamie Hayter

They go to the mat to start and neither can get very far. Back up and Hayter wins a power off and sends Storm outside as we take an early break. We come back with Storm getting two off a high crossbody but getting caught in a Rock Bottom backbreaker (with Hayter just barely getting the knee in). The ripcord lariat is countered into a German suplex though and Storm gets a breather as Hayter rolls to the apron. They slug it out until Hayter grabs a superplex, only to get small packaged for two. Hayter rolls through a backslide but Storm is right there with Storm Zero to advance at 8:32.

Rating: C+. They kept this one moving and had a physical fight to get there. I like that Storm is getting rehabbed a bit as she came in and then cooled off rather quickly, but at least they’re doing a little something with her here. I’m not sure if she is getting past Britt Baker, but one win on TV is better than another loss.

Video on Kazarian vs. Scorpio Sky.

Sammy Guevara and Tay Conti warn Kazarian about Scorpio Sky but he doesn’t want to hear it. Guevara: “SCU later.” Kazarian: “Your vlog sucks.”

Here is what is coming up on various shows. They do clarify that Wardlow will get his ten lashes next week.

Owen Hart Foundation First Round: Darby Allin vs. Jeff Hardy

Anything goes and Sting/Matt Hardy are the seconds. Allin starts at the bell and dropkicks Hardy to the floor. A bunch of chairs are set up next to each other (eight, set up four by two) but Jeff sends him face first into the steps. Hardy hammers away and turns the steps on their side but the Twist of Fate is blocked. Instead, Hardy pulls out a ladder (as we’re less than three minutes into the match) and we take a break.

Back with Allin on top of the big ladder in the ring and, after doing Jeff’s pose, flip dives onto Hardy onto the eight chairs. With that horrifically stupid idea out of the way (and Allin thankfully still moving), Allin misses a Coffin Drop onto the apron, allowing Hardy to put him on the steps for the Twist of Fate. The Swanton only hits steps though and Allin takes him back in for the Coffin Drop….so Hardy rolls him up for the pin at 10:16.

Rating: D. I know that’s not going to go over well but I got angrier and angrier throughout this….well it wasn’t wrestling so I’m not sure what to call it. Within three minutes, they had eight chairs, the ring steps and a ladder in play. After a break they did a crazy spot, then they did a crazy spot, then Allin hit his finisher but Jeff pinned him anyway. As in Jeff hardy, who can barely move, pinned Darby Allin, who (assuming he isn’t in a wheelchair because no one with any authority will tell him to stop doing those dangerous spots) could be a top star around here. If you liked it then that’s cool, but this was absolutely not for me in any way.

Post match the Undisputed Elite comes out to stare down the Hardys to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a MUCH better show than last week so I think we can write that off as the kind of bad night that happens to everyone. Main event aside (and I’m likely to be pretty alone on that one), this was an entertaining show but more importantly, it moved things forward towards Double Or Nothing. A lot of the card is either already set or is pretty clear, so now they can spend the next few weeks hammering things down. That is the important part of this week, but they also had some good action throughout. Nice stuff this week, which tends to be the case around here.

Results
Adam Cole b. Dax Harwood – Sharpshooter
CM Punk b. John Silver – Buckshot lariat
Tony Nese b. Danhausen – Running Nese
Ricky Starks b. Jungle Boy – Roshambo
Toni Storm b. Jamie Hayter – Storm Zero
Jeff Hardy b. Darby Allin – Crucifix

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

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

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

Rampage
Date: April 22, 2022
Location: Petersen Events Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ricky Starks, Taz, Excalibur

We’re back on Friday this week as AEW has been trying to ramp this show up a bit more in recent weeks. That means more star power, and this week it means a title match as Jade Cargill is defending the TBS Title against Marina Shafir. We also have a pretty big showdown between Adam Cole and Tomohiro Ishii. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Adam Cole vs. Tomohiro Ishii

We go right to the ring (with Rocky Romero and Orange Cassidy at ringside) with Cole striking away but getting dropped with a chop. They head outside with Ishii hitting the post and getting driven into the barricade. Back in and Cole grabs the chinlock but seems to be favoring his arm. Some forearms don’t do much on Ishii, who knocks Cole into the corner with a single shot. Back up and Cole charges into a powerslam but slips out of a powerslam.

The fireman’s carry onto the knee drops Ishii and we take a break. We come back with Ishii hitting a superplex and sliding lariat for two each. Cole grabs a brainbuster onto the knee but Ishii shrugs off a superkick. Ishii hits an enziguri and headbutting him, only to have Cole hit a superkick. That still doesn’t matter as Ishii hits a hard clothesline, only to have Jay White run out and send Rocky Romero into the steps. The distraction lets Cole get in a low blow and the Boom finishes Ishii at 11:18.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure I’d call that a dream match but Cole going over a bigger name is a good thing for his future. Granted I don’t know how good of an idea it is to have him on a show a week after losing in a Texas Death Match to a big finisher, but if he was just fine on Dynamite, he can be just fine here….right?

Earlier today, the Jericho Appreciation Society wasn’t allowed in the building. Chris Jericho doesn’t like it but backs down from a bunch of security. Daniel Garcia is allowed in because he has a match, though Jericho promises to call human resources on the main guard.

Danhausen eats some of Hook’s chips to steal his power, but Hook pins him against the wall and says (I believe for the first time) that if Danhausen wants his attention, he has it. Danhausen knows he’s in trouble.

Lance Archer vs. Serpentico

Serpentico jumps at Archer to start and can’t even knock him down. Shawn Spears is on commentary as Archer starts the destruction, setting up the Blackout for the pin at 29 seconds. Same thing they did with Butcher last week and it’s still the right thing to do.

Post match Archer hits some chokeslams.

Video on Tony Nese and Mark Sterling.

Eddie Kingston vs. Daniel Garcia

Kingston starts fast by taking it to the floor for some chops. Back in and Garcia gets in a shot of his own, only to have his skin removed with a chop. Kingston fights off an armbar with some knees to the ribs and chops away as commentary compares Garcia’s chest to various cuts of meat.

We take a break and come back with Garcia reversing a dragon sleeper and hitting a suplex to send Kingston into the corner. The Boston crab sends Kingston towards the ropes so Garcia tries a failed Sharpshooter attempt. Back up and Kingston manages an exploder suplex, setting up the Spinning Backfist To The Future for the pin at 12:20.

Rating: C+. The long and drawn out build towards their respective teams finally having their big showdown continues, but I’m not sure if they can make it all the way to Double Or Nothing. Kingston getting a win is almost weird to see but he’s a bigger star than Garcia and should have gone over. If nothing else, the backfist almost always looks like a knockout shot and Kingston hits it well so it was nice to see.

Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland promise that the war isn’t over with Team Taz.

Ricky Starks: “You broke a** Kenan and Kel.” Starks promises to finish the job with Lee and Strickland. I had to pause for a second after the Kenan and Kel line because nothing was topping that this week.

Toni Storm and Jamie Hayter are ready to fight each other.

Dax Harwood is ready to fight Cash Wheeler for himself and his family.

Mark Sterling reveals that he is a black belt, having bought it for $20 on Amazing. As for tonight, he is ready to celebrate Jade Cargill’s win over Marina Shafir. That doesn’t work for Shafir, because problems don’t worry about plans. Time for the main event.

TBS Title: Marina Shafir vs. Jade Cargill

Cargill, with Mark Sterling, is defending. Shafir goes at her but Cargill isn’t impressed and hits a fall away slam into the nip up. A clothesline puts Shafir on the floor, where Cargill follows to get some kisses on the cheek from the Baddies section. Back in and a belly to back suplex gives Cargill two, followed by a powerslam for the same.

We take a break and come back with Shafir fighting out of an armbar and taking her down to work on the leg. With that broken up, they head outside where Sterling’s interference earns him a throw of his own. Cargill gets in a pump kick though and chokeslams her onto (not through) the timekeeper’s table. Back in and the foot on the chest cover gives Cargill two, with Shafir pulling her into a kneebar. Cargill fights out and hits Jaded (with Shafir having NO emotion on her face as she goes up) to retain at 11:39.

Rating: C. All things considered, this could have been FAR worse. They were smart to keep things simple and have them in spots where they could walk around a bit in between moves, as it let them burn some time off the clock and kept things simple. Neither of these two has any significant experience and neither is what I would consider really good in the ring. Cargill has an amazing presence to her and can make the limited stuff work, which is enough to focus on to ignore what wasn’t a great match otherwise. While it looked very, very planned out, they got through this rather well and I’d call that a big success.

Balloons fall to celebrate Jade being 30-0 to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The star power was here this week and it continues to serve as a supplement to Dynamite, though it wasn’t exactly must see stuff. The best thing about Rampage continues to be that it is still an hour long and it can’t have that much time to overstay its welcome. That was the case here as just as it was starting to lose its charm, the show was wrapping up, which is some pretty good timing.

Results
Adam Cole b. Tomohiro Ishii – Boom
Lance Archer b. Serpentico – Black Out
Eddie Kingston b. Daniel Garcia – Spinning Backfist To The Future
Jade Cargill b. Marina Shafir – Jaded

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.

Rampage
Date: April 15, 2022
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Ricky Starks, Taz

It’s a big show this week as AEW has suddenly started turning this show into something that matters. That means a World Title match this week, as Hangman Page defends the World Title against Adam Cole in a Texas Death Match. That could mean a possible title change and that means a nice feeling. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Gunn Club

William Regal joins commentary as Austin punches Yuta in the face to start. Yuta ties the legs up and hammers away before putting on a leglock. It’s off to Danielson to tie up the legs and rip at Colton’s face, setting up a surfboard. Billy comes in and elbows Danielson in the face to cut him off as we take a break.

Back with Danielson hitting his way to freedom so Moxley can come in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Yuta hits a high crossbody. Danielson adds the running knee to Colton but Billy’s double clothesline breaks up the double dives. A powerslam gives Billy two but Yuta is right back with his bridging rollup for the pin at 9:04.

Rating: B-. I’m trying to get into Yuta and it’s just not clicking yet. In a similar way to Daniel Garcia, it’s kind of hard to get behind the idea of these wrestling machines. The match with Moxley was a great story, but now he’s just the third guy out there with Danielson and Moxley. This was a good showcase for the Blackpool guys though and I want to see where they’re going next. Yuta can keep being a project, but he isn’t quite there yet and I don’t know if he’s going to get there without some changes.

Butcher vs. ???

The guy, whose name couldn’t be heard over the crowd, hits a missile dropkick at the bell but Butcher doesn’t go down. A running clothesline in the corner sets up a powerbomb for the pin at 53 seconds. Shawn Spears, on commentary, approves as he should, because this was a good way to build Butcher up for Wardlow next week.

Dustin Rhodes talks about how he has been on this final run for a long time now and it is time to get one of his bucket list matches. He wants CM Punk next week on Dynamite.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Ruby Soho vs. Robyn Renegade

Soho hammers away to start but gets sent into the corner for the handstand in the corner. That lets Renegade get in a superkick to take over and the camel clutch goes on. We take a break and come back with Soho hitting a suplex and starting to get fired up. Soho sends her into the corner but gets hit in the eyes, allowing Robyn’s twin sister Charlotte to switch places with her.

Excalibur says this is a Killer Bees switch, which isn’t exactly the same thing as the Bees used masks. Instead it’s more like the Bellas, but Excalibur likes to try and sound smarter than he actually is. Soho’s top rope backsplash hits knees and she hits No Future to send Charlotte to the floor, where the twins switch places again. A swinging Downward Spiral finishes Robyn at 8:23.

Rating: C-. The switch was a bit of an obstacle for Soho but I don’t think there was any doubt about the winners here. Soho is someone who still feels like a star and could make a run in the tournament. That isn’t going to be the case for either of the Renegade twins, making this little more than a warmup match for Soho.

Here’s what’s coming on various upcoming shows.

Hangman Page calls Adam Cole a thorn in his side and promises to end things tonight. Cole says tonight is going to be the worst night of Page’s career and it’s time for the main event.

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Adam Cole

Page is defending in a Texas Death Match (Last Man Standing). Before he even gets in the ring, Page starts throwing in chairs before knocking Cole down and going after his leg. They head outside with Cole being knocked around the ring and sent into the required table. The beating goes into the crowd with Page knocking him around the arena, though he does stop for a beer. Cole gets knocked back into the ring, where Page takes a chair to the top.

After head faking Cole to avoid the superkick out of the air, Page moonsaults down onto him with the chair for a five count. Page knocks him to the floor where Cole is busted open as we take a break. Back with Cole using a chain, which is tied to the top rope, for a clothesline to take over. Some chairs are set up but Page hits a Death Valley Driver/AA onto the tops of said chairs for the big knockdown.

The Deadeye on the pile of chairs sends Page outside, with Cole going up top. The huge moonsault is superkicked out of the air for a seven count, setting up the Panama Sunrise onto the chairs for eight. Page fights back up and they sit down in the chairs for the slugout with Cole getting the better of it. Cole picks now to yell about how Page will never be Kenny Omega, earning himself the Buckshot Lariat.

Page uses a belt to tie Cole to the top rope before pulling out a barbed wire chair. Page can’t use it though and Cole gets out for a low blow. That isn’t enough for the win so Page wraps some barbed wire around his arm. Cole goes up, only to get knocked back down, with Page wrapping the barbed wire around Cole’s head. The Deadeye off the apron through a table at ringside retains the title at 20:05.

Rating: B. I don’t know what to think about these matches anymore. They have their moments and good spots, but AEW has done these things so often anymore that none of them feel even remotely important. How long will it be before they run another weapons match? Maybe two weeks? Other than that, this feud felt like a solid midcard title feud that became a World Title feud, which didn’t do it any favors. Solid fight, but nothing that is going to have any staying power.

Overall Rating: B-. Another good week on the show, though the best part of this was the time slot. I would absolutely love for Rampage to move to seven permanently, just for the sake of the night wrapping up earlier. Much like the third hour of Raw going until 11, there is something draining about a show going that late. This was a better way to start the Friday night wrestling lineup and they had another nice show, especially with an actually important main event for once.

Results
Blackpool Combat Club b. Gunn Club – Bridging cradle to Billy
Butcher b. ??? – Powerbomb
Ruby Soho b. Robyn Renegade – Swinging Downward Spiral
Hangman Page b. Adam Cole – Deadeye through a table

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.

Dynamite
Date: April 6, 2022
Location: Agganis Arena, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, Excalibur

It’s pretty rare to have a lot of things going on when a company hasn’t had a major show, but that is the case this week. Ring of Honor’s Supercard of Honor event was basically AEW’s Wrestlemania weekend show and included the debut of Samoa Joe. He’ll be here tonight, and that means things could get a lot more interesting. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Adam Cole vs. Christian Cage

They stare at each other for a bit until Christian grabs a headlock to grind away a bit. Cole breaks that up and sends him into the corner to take over. Christian knocks him outside though and it’s a baseball slide out to the floor. That means some chops up against the barricade but Christian’s foot gets caught in the ropes, allowing Cole to take over again. A hard whip into the corner rocks Christian and we take a break.

Back with Christian knocking him to the floor again and diving over the top to….I think it connected but it was more grazing Cole’s hands/arms. Back in and Christian hits the pendulum kick in the corner, setting up the tornado DDT for two. Cole’s Backstabber out of the corner gets two more and the low superkick into the running knee (knee pad still up and to the face instead of the back of the head) is good for the same. The Boom is countered into a rollup for two, followed by Christian hitting a spear for two more. With nothing else working, Cole pokes him in the eye and hits the Boom for the pin at 14:50.

Rating: B-. This is where Christian can help a lot, as he has a reputation that means a win over him still means something and can make anyone look good. Cole gets a nice win and Christian has been a made man for a long time so it isn’t like he is hurt here. Good choice for an opener and the kind of win that gives Cole an actually important win.

Post match ReDDragon comes out for the beatdown but the Jurassic Express makes the save. Christian walks off to the side of the stage as the other four brawl (After rolling outside pretty fast after the pin. Hopefully nothing is wrong.). With everyone else gone, Hangman Page comes down to get in Cole’s face. Page issues the challenge for a Texas Death Match for the title next week on Rampage (not Dynamite), while telling him to get his affairs in order.

We look back at Jay Lethal challenging Jonathan Gresham for the World Title and beating him down, only for Samoa Joe to return and take out Lethal’s associate Sonjay Dutt.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Samoa Joe vs. Max Caster

Anthony Bowens is here with Caster, whose rap talks about how Samoa Joe is an overweight X-Division wrestler who was NXT Champion when Dynamite beat NXT in the ratings. Joe starts fast and hammers away in the corner, even throwing in a dance. Caster gets knocked to the floor for the suicide dive and it’s the MuscleBuster for the pin at 2:53. Total and complete destruction, as it should have been.

Post match Jay Lethal and Sonjay Dutt pop up on screen to say they aren’t scared of Joe. They had a change of heart last week and now it’s about doing what they want. The might not have needed one had Joe just answered his phone in the last four months. Joe clearly has a phone, but he’ll only answer calls from billionaires. It’s not too late to roll out the red carpet for Joe though, so next week Lethal promises him a present. Next week, Joe is getting a present that he’ll never forget. Dutt is quite the odd addition to this story. I know he and Lethal have history together but there was no one else to pair up with Lethal?

William Regal is happy with the Blackpool Combat Club, as Wheeler Yuta will face Jon Moxley on Friday. Regal feels sorry for Yuta, and Moxley promises violence.

Shawn Spears vs. Shawn Dean

MJF is on commentary as commentary points out that Dean has beaten him. Spears throws Dean over the top for a big crash, only to stop and point at the security posters for Wardlow. Back in and Spears hits a pumphandle driver onto the knee for two, with Spears pulling him up. We cut to the back where security has been taken out and the fans know what’s up. Now we see Wardlow beating up security and coming into the arena, where he beats up even more security. In the melee, Dean rolls Spears up for the pin at 3:48.

Rating: C-. The match was a squash with a fluke ending and that’s fine as a way to keep pushing Wardlow as a major threat to MJF. The destruction is coming and it is going to be awesome once we get there. Dean could have been anyone here but giving him a pair of wins over Dean and MJF is a nice bit of continuity.

Wardlow is very happy as security takes him out of the arena.

The Best Friends aren’t happy with Wheeler Yuta finding new friends. Chuck Taylor even bought him his tights and Yuta lives on his couch. Trent is less forgiving, calling him a scumbag before leaving.

Earlier tonight, Eddie Kingston/Santana/Ortiz beat down the Jericho Appreciation Society in the back. The Society bailed away in a car.

Here are Kingston/Santana/Ortiz in the arena for a chat. Eddie talks about how he’s coming for the Society and threatens to show up at Daniel Garcia’s door. Santana and Ortiz say they’ll be ready when Jericho stops running, say next week for example.

Here are Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling for a chat. Cargill introduces her Baddie Section, which is what she describes as a bunch of beautiful women with power. She’s ready for Marina Shafir to be her 30th victim.

MJF and Shawn Spears aren’t happy with Wardlow but MJF promises more security next week. As for Dean, he can face MJF next week, where he’ll get a Purple Heart for being injured worse than he ever could have been in the military.

Hardys vs. Butcher and the Blade

Tables match. It’s a brawl to start with Blade clotheslining Jeff down inside. Blade misses a charge through a table in the corner, which doesn’t count as it wasn’t an offensive move (as made clear by the pre-match announcement of the rules). Butcher and Matt come in, where Butcher can’t suplex Matt through a table. A double DDT drops Butcher but Blade breaks up what looked to be the Swanton through the table. That leaves Jeff to get suplexed/high crossbodied through a table for the elimination.

We take a break and come back with Matt chairing Butcher, setting up a top rope legdrop through the table for the elimination. That leaves Matt vs. Blade but Matt puts himself through a table off the apron. Butcher sticks around to help double team Matt, who is thrown over the barricade.

A double suplex brings him back over but Jeff has moved the table. What looks to be Poetry In Motion into a clothesline against the barricade doesn’t look great so Jeff makes up for it with the Twisting Stunner to Blade. Matt hits a Twist of Fate on the floor and the Hardys set up two tables underneath a ladder (you knew it was coming). The Swanton off the top drives Blade through the table to give the Hardys the win at 11:55.

Rating: C+. It was pretty good, though I’m trying to get my head around the Hardys being hyped up for their history in tables matches. The Hardys are certainly stars, but it doesn’t feel like they are a big deal at the moment. Maybe that’s FTR being on another level and the Hardys not being anywhere the title picture, but it feels like they’re still waiting to take off. They certainly can do that, though it hasn’t happened yet.

Post match here is Andrade, flanked by the AFO, but here is sting with the baseball bat to beat them down. The AFO didn’t do anything, so maybe Sting just broke up the presentation of a lovely bowling trophy.

Christian Cage is ticked off and walks away from Jurassic Express’ interview. The Express doesn’t think much of ReDDragon’s records but they can have a title shot next week anyway.

Thunder Rosa is ready for Nyla Rose at Championship Fight Night on April 16.

Jamie Hayter isn’t shaking Toni Storm’s hand because she wants to win the Owen Hart tournament.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Hikaru Shida vs. Julia Hart

Hart still has the eye patch and sends the Varsity Blonds to the back. Hart gets in a shot in the corner which has Shida mad as we take an early break. Back with Shida pounding away and hitting a running knee in the corner. Hart rakes the eyes to get off of Shida’s shoulders though and a splits bulldog gets two. What looked to be Twisted Bliss only has Hart’s knees hitting the mat though and Shida elbows her down. Shida hits a spinning knee though and the Falcon Arrow is good for the pin at 7:40.

Rating: D+. Yozwa this didn’t work very well, as they felt like they were on different pages at times. The moves weren’t connecting very well, they didn’t seem to be communicating and it was just awkward throughout. It’s rare to see a match go this badly in AEW but this was a pretty bad showing.

Post match Serena Deeb comes out for a kendo stick/chair showdown with Shida before bailing. This feud MUST CONTINUE you see.

Shane Strickland had a good time at the Grammys but here is Team Taz to jump him. Keith Lee makes the save and drives Powerhouse Hobbs through a wall.

AAA Tag Team Titles/Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles: FTR vs. Young Bucks

The Bucks are challenging. Harwood headlocks Matt down to start and it’s off to Dax to do the same to Nick. An armdrag into an armbar keeps Nick down but everyone comes in for the big staredown. We settle down to Dax taking Matt down with a headlock, setting up double Sharpshooters from FTR. Nick rakes the Wheeler’s eyes for the break and it’s Matt hitting a middle rope elbow on Wheeler.

The Bret Hart pose sets up the tag off to Nick and we take a break. Back with Wheeler suplexing his way out of trouble but Matt cuts off the tag attempt. Harwood Matt outside though and kicks his way over for the tag off to Harwood. House is cleaned with Harwood chopping away in the corner and getting two off a small package. Matt’s backslide (with Harwood’s shoulder not on the mat) gets two, as does Harwood’s piledriver. The PowerPlex is loaded up but Nick cuts off Wheeler with a super hurricanrana.

A dropkick/bulldog combination connects but Harwood brainbusters Nick on the floor. Wheeler Gory Bombs Matt for two but what looks like a low blow takes Wheeler down. The Big Rig gets two on Wheeler and More Bang For Your Buck connects for the same. Nick gets in a belt shot for two more on Wheeler but Harwood dives in for the save.

There’s a double superkick to Harwood and the BTE Trigger gets….a Dusty Finish, as Wheeler gets his foot on the ropes just before three, meaning the pin is called off. The Meltzer Driver is loaded up but Harwood makes the save, setting up a slingshot powerbomb to Matt. The Tombstone plants Matt and, after the double kiss, the Big Rig retains the titles at 20:00.

Rating: A. This is what you can get when you tone the Bucks down. Two superkicks, one or two flips. It was much, much better than their usual stuff and a high quality match instead of their usual junk food wrestling. The Bucks are very impressive athletes, but there are times where they want to remind you of that a bit too much. Have someone to keep them on more of a leash and you get an instant classic like this.

At the same time, FTR can do absolutely no wrong at the moment. They did this in NXT and they are doing it in AEW. These guys are just great and are becoming must see television. That isn’t something that has been the case in tag wrestling since probably Edge and Christian vs. the Hardys vs. the Dudleyz and that was 20+ years ago. Awesome stuff here and absolutely worth seeing.

Overall Rating: B+. The main event absolutely lifted this show up as, aside from maybe the opener, it wasn’t exactly great. This was the week where they moved things forward for later though and you can see a lot of what they are going for at the next Battle of the Belts. FTR is an amazing team at the moment though and that’s about all you need to remember from this show. Check out that main event for sure.

Results
Adam Cole b. Christian Cage – Boom
Samoa Joe b. Max Caster – MuscleBuster
Shawn Dean b. Shawn Spears – Rollup
Hardys b. Butcher and the Blade – Swanton Bomb through a table to Blade
Hikaru Shida b. Julia Hart – Falcon Arrow
FTR b. Young Bucks – Big Rig to Matt

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Dynamite
Date: March 23, 2022
Location: HEB Center, Cedar Park, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re still in Texas and this time around CM Punk is back for a match with Dax Harwood. Other than that we are probably going to hear something from Thunder Rosa after she won the Women’s Title last week in her hometown. If we’re lucky, we might even get more of the Young Bucks trying to find out who their real friends are. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Dax Harwood

Cash Wheeler is here too. They grapple into the corner to start and Harwood takes him down for an early breather. Punk is back up with a hammerlock but Harwood elbows him in the face to break it up. Back up and Punk gets kneed in the ribs, setting up a snap suplex. A backbreaker doesn’t even get one so Harwood grabs a chinlock. Harwood misses a headbutt though and it’s time to forearm it out. Punk gets the better of things and goes up top, where he has to cut Harwood off from trying a superplex.

The Macho Man elbow takes WAY too long though and Punk gets crotched down and now the top rope superplex connects. The top rope headbutt connects to give Harwood two and Punk is back up without much trouble. They suplex each other over the top for the nasty crash to the floor, setting up a high crossbody for two on Harwood back inside. The Anaconda Vice goes on but Harwood goes to the hair for the break.

Punk kicks him in into the corner and grabs a rollup, only to have them trade small packages for two each. Harwood is back up with a slingshot powerbomb for two, with Cash Wheeler being pulled up off the floor on the near fall. Punk fights up and sends him into the corner, setting up the GTS, which is countered into a Sharpshooter of all things. That’s too far for Punk, who gets out and pulls him into the GTS for the tap at 12:54.

Rating: B. Like this wasn’t going to be good, as you have Harwood who can wrestle an old school style and Punk who can work with anyone. It made for a good match and I wanted to see more, which is about as good as you can get. What I especially liked here was they took a tag wrestler and let him hang with Punk for a bit before ultimately falling. Punk gets a workout and Harwood isn’t going to be hurt by an out of his element loss to a top star. Rather good opener here.

Punk signals that he wants the title.

The Jericho Appreciation Society love that there is a photo of John Silver meeting Chris Jericho as a kid. Being in the same ring puts Silver on another level but not on the same level. The team looks around for Eddie Kingston, Santana and Ortiz, who they know are gone, because that’s entertainment.

Sting/Darby Allin/Hardys vs. AFO

Tornado tag match with Private Party/Butcher and the Blade for the AFO. Allin and Sting start fast with the dives and the multiple brawls start on the floor. Jeff charges at Blade to take him over the barricade and Sting actually hits the Stinger Splash on Kassidy against the barricade. Allin gets powerbombed up against some walls and Butcher tosses him down the steps as we take a break.

Back with Private Party giving Matt a double Side Effect off the stage through a table as we cut to the concourse, where Jeff Hardy climbs up a ladder, goes up onto a ledge, and Swantons onto Butcher and Blade through some tables. With that huge spot out of the way, we head back to the ring where Sting shrugs off a chair shot to the back and fires up on Private Party. Matt is back up (because of course he is) and a stereo Twist of Fate and Twist of Fate set up the double pin at 9:24.

Rating: B-. It was another fun match with some crazy spots, but I can’t bring myself to get that invested in these things anymore. Sting and the AFO just had one of these big wild brawls earlier this month and there is likely to be another one not too long from now. Jeff diving off of stuff doesn’t do much for me anymore, but the AFO losing is always good for a bit of a smile.

FTR is all fired up and wants to fight the Gunn Club next week, with Harwood going into a good rant about how they’re the best tag team around here.

Varsity Blonds vs. Jon Moxley/Bryan Danielson

Julia Hart sits on the steps with her back to the ring and William Regal is on commentary. Moxley and Danielson jump Garrison to start and the fight is on fast. Danielson knocks Garrison down and we take an early break. We come back with Garrison backdropping Danielson to the floor but getting dropped with a right hand from Moxley. Back up and a dropkick/spinebuster combination gets two on Moxley. Danielson is back in with the running knee to Pillman and a bunch of hard strikes to the head knock the Blonds silly. Stereo submissions are enough to make the Blonds tap at 6:00.

Rating: C+. That’s the kind of squash Danielson and Moxley should be having, as they beat up a team with a bit of credibility and did it fast. The Blonds had no change here but they got in a bit of time to keep it from being total destruction. As for Julia….does she really need some story? She can’t just keep being the pretty cheerleader for the time being while she builds up some experience?

Post match Regal comes into the ring, where Moxley talks about how there is no greater honor than to learn from Regal. He wears the Blackpool Badge of Honor and along with the perfect wrestler Bryan Danielson, they were forged in combat. If you want to step up to them, you better be ready for some violence. Of note: Julia Hart sat on the steps throughout the match and the post match promo.

Here is MJF, flanked by Shawn Spears and security. MJF mocks Wardlow for lowing to Scorpio Sky last week, but for now he wants to talk about CM Punk some more. Punk knows that he was beaten at Revolution, just like he did in Chicago, but rest assured that there will be another match. Then MJF will take him out and give him the most embarrassing loss ever.

Back to Wardlow, there are people who like him and that is because they are inbred. MJF is going to start calling Wardlow “Pig”, because he is a greedy little pig. When MJF met him, Wardlow had nothing and no one would know who Wardlow was without him. Now Wardlow actually has something, but he dared to cost MJF the biggest match of his career. Then Wardlow DARED to ask for MJF to release him from his contract? That was a deal with the devil, and it is iron clad.

Wardlow is going to ask how high when MJF tells him to jump, but MJF might even throw Wardlow’s mom out of her house anyway. Cue Wardlow, but a ton of security holds him back. MJF says he’s going to keep paying Wardlow, but it is to keep him at home until everyone forgets he ever existed. Security gets Wardlow to the back, with MJF saying that the Pinnacle has never been better. Next week FTR is in action and the Pinnacle is going to move up.

Trent Beretta throws Wheeler Yuta out of the Best Friends for suggesting he wanted to join William Regal and company. Yuta never liked Trent either and says he’s here to be the best wrestler, not to be the best friend. Trent should get that.

Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal

Lethal takes him into the corner to start but gets elbowed in the face. Back up and Lethal starts taking things a bit more seriously, including a waistlock to the mat. Cole fights up with an enziguri but Lethal grabs the Lethal Combination. Lethal gets knocked outside so Cole poses, allowing Lethal to knock him outside. The series of suicide dives connects until Cole runs away from the last one, only to have Lethal hit another one. Cue ReDRagon to watch as we take a break.

Back with Lethal’s Figure Four attempt being countered into a small package for two, so Lethal tries it again. This one works a bit better, with the hold actually going on and Cole having to go to the ropes. Cole grabs the ring skirt to distract the referee so ReDRagon can distract Lethal. That lets Cole roll Lethal up for two but the Boom is countered with a cutter. Cole superkicks the Lethal Injection away though and the Panama Sunrise gets two on Lethal, leaving Cole stunned. The Boom misses again but ReDRagon offers another distraction so Cole can hit Lethal low. Now the Boom can finish Lethal at 10:03.

Rating: C+. They did their thing well enough here and that shouldn’t be a surprise. These two have a history together and they got to have their match until the villain cheated to win. Lethal is someone you can send out there and guarantee at least a pretty good match and Cole gets a nice win too. It’s cool to see a match where you know it’s going to work and then it does just that for a change.

Post match Cole says no one deserves to be the World Champion more than he does and he is going to ruin Hangman Page’s life. Page is scared of him but here is Page to interrupt, even though it’s 3-1. The title is dropped so Page takes the belt out of his jeans and starts whipping away. Cole manages a low blow though and the beatdown is on, with Cole holding up the title. Jurassic Express and Christian Cage run in for the save, but Cole leaves with the title.

Video on Lance Archer vs. Dustin Rhodes, which is coming up on Rampage. Rhodes wants revenge (for Archer beating him up a long time ago on Dynamite) in his hometown because monsters die too. Point for a good last line.

Sammy Guevara is in the ring with Tay Conti and isn’t happy about losing the TNT Title. He wants to be the guy that fans want to pay to see because he is going to do something so crazy that you have to see it. Yes he knows he can’t do this style forever, because it’s going to catch up to him eventually, but it’s worth the whole thing. Conti rants in Portuguese and translates it into a threat to Paige VanZant.

Sammy wants the two of them to fight any two of the Men of the Year, so here is the team (minus VanZant) to rant about how great they are. Did you know that Sky hasn’t lost a match since Tony Khan hit puberty? That was more than a year ago! Dan Lambert says not so fast on the match and kisses the interim TNT Title, but Sammy says if Lambert only knew what Sammy and Conti did while they wore that title. Lambert’s disgusted reaction is hilarious.

Video on Shane Strickland vs. Ricky Starks for the FTW World Title on Rampage this week.

Leyla Hirsch vs. Red Velvet

Kris Statlander is barred from ringside and Hirsch knocks Velvet off the apron before the bell. Velvet sends her into the barricade though and they go inside for the opening bell and a lot of stomping. Hirsch knocks her back down though and we take a break. Back with Velvet hitting a running knee to the back and pounding away a bit. The springboard is countered into a German suplex but Velvet catches her on top. The Mix connects so Hirsch rolls outside and pulls out the turnbuckle. That’s taken away, so here’s another piece of the turnbuckle out of her gear to knock Velvet silly for the pin at 6:24.

Rating: C-. This is a good example of a match that didn’t need to be on Dynamite as it was there to help advance a midcard feud at best. Velvet continues to look pretty lame by comparison and this was a pretty big downgrade over everything else on the show so far. Keep this on Rampage or Dark.

Post match the beatdown stays on and Kris Statlander runs in for the save.

Jade Cargill wants plans for the after party of her thirtieth win, including a lot of green stuff and exotic dancers.

Here is Thunder Rosa for her first chat as the Women’s Champion but Vickie Guerrero interrupts. Vickie does not like Rosa acting like she is really from Texas so she can “backstroke back to Mexico”. This turns into an argument about citizenship until Nyla Rose jumps Rosa from behind and beats her down. Two people arguing about the love of Texas. This sounds familiar for some reason.

Dark Order vs. Daniel Garcia/Chris Jericho

John Silver/Alex Reynolds for the Order. Before the match, Matt Minard praises Jericho a bit. Silver armdrags Jericho down to start and the Order knocks Jericho outside, setting up a brainbuster/dive combination. Back in and Garcia gets launched into a forearm to the face, leaving Jericho to pretend that the rest of the Order sent him into the steps. That’s enough for a big ejection and we take a break.

We come back with everything breaking down and Silver getting to clean house. Silver even takes down Jake Hager on the floor and a high crossbody gets two on Jericho. The Codebreaker gives Jericho two of his own and Jericho is shocked. The Order hits the running boot into the German suplex into the flip over rollup for two on Garcia but Hager starts wrecking people on the floor. Reynolds hits Garcia with a pop up knee but Jericho uses Floyd, setting up Garcia’s Scorpion Deathlock to make Reynolds tap at 9:59.

Rating: C. That’s your main event? It wasn’t awful but Jericho and company needing a numbers game and a baseball bat to beat some midcard guys isn’t a good sign for them. This didn’t feel like a main event match and it needed something bigger going on to get to that high of a spot on the show. Silver continues to shine in this role, and an underdog run after the TNT Title would be fun.

Overall Rating: B-. This show started off red hot and then dropped a fairly good bit. There was no way they were following those two openers, with the crowd carrying both of them to even greater heights. As usual, a weak AEW show is still good and the fans made this one feel that much better. Mix up the order on this and it’s a lot better, but for now it’s just another entertaining show.

Results
CM Punk b. Dax Harwood – Anaconda Vice
Sting/Hardys/Darby Allin b. AFO – Double pin to Private Party
Bryan Danielson/Jon Moxley b. Varsity Blonds – Rear naked choke to Garrison
Adam Cole b. Jay Lethal – Boom
Leyla Hirsch b. Red Velvet – Turnbuckle rod to the face
Chris Jericho/Daniel Garcia b. Dark Order – Scorpion Deathlock to Reynolds

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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Dynamite
Date: March 16, 2022
Location: Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

It’s time for another major show with St. Patrick’s Day Slam and we actually have a rematch from last year’s edition. This week will see Thunder Rosa challenging Britt Baker for the Women’s Title inside a cage following their classic war last year. Other than that, Wardlow gets his TNT Title shot so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Jurassic Express/Hangman Page vs. Adam Cole/ReDRagon

Jungle Boy hurricanranas Cole down to start but gets sent into the corner so Fish can come in to crank on the arm. That doesn’t last long as it’s off to Luchasaurus, who sends the villains outside but gets kicked off the apron. Fish posts him to take over and it’s time to work over the leg back inside. O’Reilly twists the knee around but Luchasaurus fights his way out and the hot tag brings in Page to clean house.

A sitout powerbomb gets two on Fish and Jungle Boy hits a big flip dive over Page to take out all three villains. Back in and the good guys go up top and it’s a triple moonsault off the same corner (Luchasaurus from the apron, Page from the top to the floor and Jungle Boy from the top onto Fish) for the big wipe out crash and a near fall. Back in and ReDRagon is back up with the running strikes in the corner to Jungle Boy and we take a break.

We come back with Luchasaurus coming in to clean house with kicks and chokeslams. What looks to be a Doomsday Device is broken up though and O’Reilly gets a kneebar on Luchasaurus. Page is caught in a guillotine but drives it into O’Reilly for the save. It’s off to Page vs. Cole for the strike off until Page hits the Deadeye. Everything breaks down and Jungle Boy hits a double Doomsday Device for two as Fish has to make the save. Back up and Cole hits the Boom on Jungle Boy for the pin at 13:49.

Rating: B. This is the match that you should have been expecting from these guys and it was quite the showcase as a result. Cole getting the pin makes sense and at least it was in a six man instead of in a regular tag match so it doesn’t hurt Jungle Boy as much. I’m not sure why we are setting up Cole vs. Page again but it should make for a good main event on a big Dynamite.

Team Taz mocks Keith Lee and tell him that he’ll get another beating if he shows up on Rampage this week. Lee threatens to punch out Ricky Starks again and says he’ll see them on Friday.

Bryan Danielson/Jon Moxley vs. Chuck Taylor/Wheeler Yuta

William Regal is on commentary. JR: “William Regal, can you control these two?” Regal: “Of course not.” As Regal has Danhausen explained to him, Moxley and Danielson jump the two of them to start fast. Yuta gets kneed in the ribs and Moxley adds a suplex for two. Some choking in the corner keeps Yuta down and Danielson comes back in to stomp on the arm as Regal talks about selling jam.

Yuta manages to get over for the tag to Taylor for some house cleaning, including a single leg crab on Danielson. The tag brings Moxley back in anyway and a kick to the face gets Danielson out of trouble. Danielson comes back in to grab an Indian deathlock on Taylor and a superplex gets two. We take a break and come back with Yuta hitting a dropkick and running forearm on Moxley, who runs him over with a clothesline. A Hart Attack gets two on Yuta but he fights back, only to get suplexed back down. The bulldog choke finishes Yuta at 11:46.

Rating: C+. It was mostly a squash, but it was longer than it needed to be as Moxley and Danielson should be running through people. Yuta got to fight a bit and that is a good thing, though at the same time it didn’t exactly make Danielson and Moxley look dominant. The two of them will be looking for some bigger competition soon though and that is what will matter most.

Post match Regal gets in the ring and Yuta offers to join up, earning a slap in the face. Yuta stares at Regal, who says something to him and Yuta leaves.

FTR seems happy to have fired Tully Blanchard but the Young Bucks come in to say it doesn’t matter who manages FTR because they’re just not that good.

The Acclaimed is ready for Keith Lee but Team Taz cuts them off for a pep talk. Shane Strickland comes in and says he’ll steal Ricky Starks’ spotlight. Strickland leaves and Caster wonders if Strickland was supposed to be a rapper.

Here is the Jericho Appreciation Society, with the fans still singing along with Judas. Matt Lee asks if the fans love singing that song and says that if it were up to him, there would be no song or singing, but Jericho is a better man than him. That is why Jericho deserves to be praised, for his contributions as a human being.

Jericho says the earth has been around for 4.5 billion years and you are lucky enough to be around during his era. We hear about some of the things he has done (including angles and promos (his words)) and how he has helped build companies, just like AEW. Instead of praising him though, people have said some very hurtful things about him on social media. Eddie Kingston was mean to him by making him tap out at Revolution but he isn’t coming out here.

Jericho isn’t a wrestler but rather a sports entertainer. Daniel Garcia grabs the mic and says he is one too. Jericho talks about a car crash on January 6, 2019 when a bunch of wrestlers were in a car crash so he donated thousands of dollars to help them. One of those men was Garcia, who was starting to get better.

As for 2.0, it’s a bad name from bad creative, so they are now using their real names: Angelo Parker and Matt Mirand. His former best friend Kevin asks Jericho to put them on Talk Is Jericho so they could hopefully get a job. Jericho saw the passion in them and helped them get to AEW. Then there is Jake Hager, who is Jericho’s ride or die man. Hager says they beat up pro wrestlers, with Jericho saying this is the start of the era of the Sports Entertainer. This felt more like the Jericho I was hoping to see, but him running another heel stable isn’t the most interesting thing.

Video on Serena Deeb vs. Hikaru Shida.

TNT Title: Wardlow vs. Scorpio Sky

Sky is defending and has Dan Lambert and company with him. Wardlow gets taken into the corner to start but Wardlow powers out and heads outside for a staredown with Paige VanZant. Paige’s husband gets in his face so Wardlow loads up the powerbomb, allowing Sky to hit a basement dropkick as we take a break.

Back with Wardlow in trouble but Sky has to punch his way out of a powerbomb out of the corner. The TKO is countered into a spinebuster and there’s the first powerbomb. Two more powerbombs make it worse but a distraction breaks up the fourth. Sky rolls to the floor but here is Shawn Spears, complete with some chairs, to offer a distraction. The referee yells at Spears, allowing MJF to come in with the Dynamite Diamond to knock Wardlow silly. That’s enough for Sky to retain the title at 9:20.

Rating: C+. I was expecting to see Wardlow win the title here but this is hardly some terrible decision. Wardlow getting to wring MJF’s neck should be fine and it will likely take place after MJF brings in a few hired goons to try to slow Wardlow down. I can also go with Sky getting a longer run with the title, as he is a bit different than most of the champions so far.

Post match Wardlow goes after MJF but gets chaired down by Spears, allowing VanZant’s husband to choke him out. Spears adds a chair to the head and MJF adds the Dynamite Diamond punch.

Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling want someone to step up to be her 30th victim.

Hardys vs. Private Party

Matt cranks on Quen’s wrist to start and it’s off to Jeff (strong reaction) and the Hardys hit their double elbow and Poetry In Motion. The chinlock goes on before it’s back to Matt, who gets taken into the wrong corner. A double elbow takes Matt down and a legdrop/standing shooting star press combination (mocking the Hardys’ sequence) gets two. Matt gets sent outside for a crash and we take a break.

Back with Kassidy hitting a running flip dive tot he floor on Matt, followed by an assisted boot to the face for two. Kassidy mocks Jeff with his own dance and Matt is over for the tag to Jeff a few seconds later. Jeff comes in and cleans house, including the middle rope splash for two on Kassidy. Everything breaks down and the Silly String is broken up, leaving the Hardys to hit stereo Twists of Fate. The Swanton finishes Kassidy at 12:17.

Rating: C+. The Hardys got a big reaction but it was just a Hardys match. I get why the team was put back together for a (or another) nostalgia run, but that’s about all it is. I’ve been watching the Hardys for almost twenty five years now and it isn’t like they haven’t been together in the last ten years or so. It was nice for a bit of a smile, but I’m not likely to get this excited over a team that I’ve seen together so many times.

Post match the AFO comes out to threaten the Hardys but Sting and Darby Allin make the save.

Red Velvet is ready for Leyla Hirsch on Rampage.

Women’s Title: Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa

Rosa, the hometown girl, is challenging in a cage (more like the Cell, as there is room on the floor) and gets played to the ring by a live band. Baker is in Scott Hall style gear and it’s a feeling out process to start. Rosa gets in a kick to the face and a clothesline and rakes Baker’s face into the cage. Some not very great right hands in the corner have Baker busted open and they head outside. Baker manages to send her into the cage for a breather and we take a break.

Back with Baker missing a chair shot so Rosa sends her into the corner for a running dropkick. The referee gets bumped though and it’s the Fire Thunder Driver for no count on Baker. That’s not enough to hold Baker down as she comes back and makes a pile of chairs. A super Air Raid Crash onto the chairs rocks Rosa as another referee runs in to count the delayed two.

With Rosa mostly done, Baker piles up six chairs (two on top of four) but Rosa sends her into the cage, sending her crashing onto the chairs. Baker busts out a superkick and grabs a bag of thumbtacks (in the match’s required call back, though JR wondering why those are there is funny).

Rosa loads up a powerbomb but gets backdropped onto the tacks, meaning she can try Lockjaw. That’s broken up with a bite to the hand before Rosa slams the other hand into the tacks. A powerbomb (with Rosa kind of falling) sends Baker into the tacks but she gets in a chair to the head. Rosa shrugs it off and hits the Fire Thunder Driver onto the tacks to win the title at 17:34.

Rating: B. It was another violent match, but this comes at the end of a story that felt like we were just sitting around waiting on this since last year when Rosa beat her in the first place. That has been the problem with all of Baker’s reign, as it has been a countdown to Rosa beating her again to get the title. As for the match itself, it was a brutal fight, though having so many violent and bloody matches in the last few months takes away some of its impact.

Confetti falls and Dustin Rhodes comes in to celebrate with Rosa to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Another good show, though it was still missing a little something to take it up to the next level. I don’t know if that’s the show focusing on a pair of rematches or something else, but it was only very good instead of great. Still though, I can certainly live with that as this was another awesome show with the opener and main event being more than enough to carry things.

Results
Adam Cole/ReDRagon b. Hangman Page/Jurassic Express – Boom to Jungle Boy
Jon Moxley/Bryan Danielson b. Wheel Yuta/Chuck Taylor – Bulldog choke to Yuta
Scorpio Sky b. Wardlow – Pin after a Dynamite Diamond punch from MJF
Hardys b. Private Party – Swanton Bomb to Kassidy
Thunder Rosa b. Britt Baker – Fire Thunder Driver onto tacks

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Dynamite
Date: March 9, 2022
Location: Hertz Arena, Fort Myers, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, Excalibur

We’re fresh off of Revolution and that means it is time to start setting up some new things going forward. We have about two and a half months before Double Or Nothing though and that means we are probably going to need some smaller stories to bridge the gap. Those could start this week so let’s get to it.

Here is Revolution if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Chris Jericho, now with his hair down for a different look, to get things going. Jericho talks about how his neck is still sore from his match with Eddie Kingston but it was one of the best matches he has ever had. After the match he refused to shake his hand but now he would like Kingston to come out here right now. Cue Kingston, who says we are going to get real deep.

On the Friday night before the biggest match of his career, he didn’t want to show up. After telling the fans that Steve Austin isn’t here tonight (in response to the WHAT chants), Kingston talks about how four people came up and said they didn’t kill themselves for his Players Tribune piece. He went to his hotel room (“And you can make fun of me if you want. I’ll still beat you up.”) and cried after the match and it was the biggest night of his career.

The match was what mattered instead of the handshake because that was a Chris Jericho thing. Kingston wanted the Jericho who was in the Super J Cup (as Lionheart, as a fan shouts) and he wants to know how Jericho can fill in the hole in his chest that wouldn’t let him shake his hand. Jericho thanks him for the match and shake his hand but here are 2.0 and Daniel Garcia to take Kingston down.

Santana and Ortiz run in for the save, with Jericho being handed a bat as Ortiz holds Garcia. As expected, Jericho then beats down Santana and Ortiz with the bat. 2.0 comes back in and helps Jericho with the beatdown. Jake Hager comes in to beat on Santana and Ortiz as well as Jericho beats on Kingston with the bat. Hager powerbombs Kingston off the apron and through the table (in a scary landing) and Jericho dubs the team the Jericho Appreciation Society. Jericho: “That’s entertainment.”

CM Punk is happy with the dog collar match and says this is a new version of him.

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Dante Martin

Martin is challenging and gets shouldered down to start but comes right back with a springboard crossbody. That’s pulled out of the air though and Page rolls into a fall away slam to send Martin to the apron. A springboard clothesline knocks Martin to the floor and we take a break.

Back with Martin hitting a missile dropkick for two and a moonsault connects to rock the champ again. They head back inside though and Page counters a moonsault into a powerbomb. The Buckshot Lariat is broken up though and they head back outside. Martin has to duck a forearm though and his springboard is broken up, allowing Page to hit the Buckshot Lariat to retain at 7:27.

Rating: C. It was fun while it lasted but you can only get so much out of a match that lasts about seven and a half minutes including a break. Martin was in a bit over his head here but did get a nice rub in the main event scene. I’m not sure if it needed to be a title match, though with Page winning without much effort, it didn’t hurt anything.

Post match Page calls Martin back to the ring and says that he knows Top Flight is back, but if Martin makes it back to the title scene, he would love to do it again. They shake hands and here is Adam Cole to interrupt. Cole isn’t happy with Page, who is ready to go right now. That’s not good for Cole, but he is challenging Page to a six man tag next week. Page can pick any two partners he wants but Cole has one of the best tag teams in the world as his partners (though he doesn’t say who). He promises to make Page’s life a nightmare until he is the new champion.

Brian Danielson/Jon Moxley vs. Work Horsemen

William Regal is here with Moxley and Danielson while the Work Horsemen are JD Drake and Anthony Henry. Danielson is kicking away at Drake to start so Henry comes in to kick at Danielson instead. That’s fine with Danielson, who takes Henry down into a surfboard, allowing the tag to Moxley. A Crash Landing (vertical suplex released into a powerbomb) drops Henry again as everything breaks down. Danielson’s running knee hits Drake as Moxley Paradigm Shifts Henry on the floor. That leaves Danielson to stomp Drake, setting up the LeBell Lock for the tap at 4:00.

Rating: C. Just a squash to start the new team and that is the right way to go. Regal is already adding something with those great facial expressions of his and it is great to see. I could go for a lot more of these three together, though I’m curious to see where they are going. They are going to need some major opponents for a feud and I’m not sure who that is going to be.

Post match Tony Schiavone talks to the winners plus Regal, the latter of whom says it has been 29 years since he came to America. He is 53 years old now and knows he doesn’t have much time left in the ring due to a lot of empty bottles and a few broken hearts. Regal: “I see you haven’t found a decent tailor in all that time Tony.” Regal thanks Tony for helping him get into the wrestling business in America before moving on to something more important. He has been checked out of wrestling for two months but then someone told him that Danielson mentioned him on Dynamite.

Then he heard that Danielson was going to fight Moxley. For the last several years, Danielson has been mentioned with Regal, who loves sitting down with wrestlers willing to sit down and learn. That can add ten years to your career, and Danielson is the perfect wrestler. They would train for hours a day and Danielson became everything that Regal couldn’t be.

Then, eleven years ago, Regal met Moxley and they went to mental and physical war for a year. He heard that they were going to fight on Sunday so it was time for him to finally get involved. What better way for the younger generation to learn than from the perfect wrestler and the perfect sadistic man who will take things to another level. That is why this team is together and just a warning: anyone who steps in the ring with them will regret it. Either step up or get stepped on. Regal got a little wordy here but he got the point across.

Hangman Page comes in to see the Dark Order, who asks him who he’ll be picking to team with them next week. Actually Page ran into the Jurassic Express, who wanted to fight the Young Bucks anyway. The Dark Order doesn’t seem pleased but they’ll catch up with him later.

Wheeler Yuta vs. Pac

Yuta knocks Pac down and we take a very early break. Back with Pac kicking away but Yuta gets up top for a high crossbody. Pac German suplexes him for two and hits the top rope superplex. The Brutalizer finishes Yuta at 5:40. Not enough shown to rate but Pac didn’t seem to break that much of a sweat.

The Young Bucks and ReDRagon continue arguing until Adam Cole cuts them off. Cole talks about the six man next week and picks ReDRagon for the tag match, which doesn’t sit well with the Bucks. Cole leaves and Brandon Cutler says he would pick the Bucks as his partners. Matt: “Shut up.” Cole: “I HEARD THAT BRANDON!”

FTR talks about how much they want to get their hands on the Bucks and ReDRagon but Tully Blanchard tells them to focus on the Tag Team Titles. That doesn’t work for Cash Wheeler, who fires Tully from the team.

It’s time for an emergency board meeting of the AHFO. Matt Hardy doesn’t like Andrade trying to kick him out of the team he founded and he just wants to make this right. Andrade says the team can take a vote, which works for Matt because Private Party will never vote him out.

Andrade votes no, Matt votes yes, Jose votes no, Private Party votes yes to start and then changes to no’s behind Matt’s back. Andrade tells him to watch his back and the beatdown is on. Sting and Darby Allin come in for the failed save but cue the debuting Jeff Hardy (to the classic Hardys theme) to make the real save for another Hardys reunion. Until Jeff gets bored and walks out again.

Tony Nese interrupts Swerve Strickland’s interview and challenges him to a match on Rampage, since they have a history on Friday nights.

Here is Wardlow for a chat. He has spent a lot of his life trying to make MJF’s life better and he hopes you can forgive him for associating with such trash. Wardlow grew up very poor and he had to watch his mother work hard to raise himself and his sisters. Therefore, he took MJF’s money to build a better life for his family and he used it as a foot in the door. He is thankful to MJF for the start but one day money isn’t enough to let MJF treat so badly.

Yes he is still under contract with MJF, but he doesn’t care. Wardlow is no longer MJF’s bodyguard and he is no longer part of the Pinnacle. He hopes that MJF will let him out of his contract and they can go their separate ways. All that matters now is that he wins the TNT Title and then the World Title. From now on, AEW is Wardlow’s World. Good speech here, as he got his point across and showed why he was on the bad side for so long in a way that people can accept.

QT Marshall talks to Keith Lee, saying that they have a shared enemy in Team Taz. Marshall and the Factory have his back. Lee says he has his own large back and leaves, with Marshall not being happy.

Tag Team Titles: Acclaimed vs. Jurassic Express

The Express is defending and Caster’s rap is about how much of a loser Jungle Boy is. Jungle Boy gets double teamed to but hands it off to Luchasaurus to clean house. Jungle Boy gets knocked outside for a cheap shot though and we take a break. Back with Luchasaurus sending the Acclaimed to the floor so Jungle Boy can hit a big dive.

A springboard is broken up and the Mic Drop gets two on Jungle Boy. There’s a combination powerbomb for two on Jungle Boy so Luchasaurus takes Caster outside. Jungle Boy small packages Bowens for two and Luchasaurus adds a headbutt. A Doomsday Device drops Bowens and the Tail Whip retains the titles at 9:26.

Rating: B-. Solid match here as the Express continues to get better every single week. Having them go over one team after another is going to make them feel that much bigger and that is a great thing to see. Good stuff here, as the Acclaimed is getting better in the ring to back up the cool entrance.

Jade Cargill wants to know who is going to step up to be her 30th victim.

Leyla Hirsch vs. Thunder Rosa

The winner gets a Women’s Title shot next week. They go to the mat to start with neither getting very far so they try it again. Rosa hits a dropkick and a running forearm in the corner but Hirsch knocks her back down and we take a break. Back with Rosa hitting a northern lights suplex for two but Hirsch grabs a German suplex.

Rosa catches her on top though and grabs a fireman’s carry spun into a faceplant. A sliding forearm gets two and Hirsch goes outside to grab the spare turnbuckle. That’s broken up by Red Velvet so Rosa loads up the fire thunder driver, which is reversed into a cross armbreaker. Rosa gets to the ropes to escape and now the fire thunder driver can finish Hirsch at 8:51.

Rating: C+. The entire point of this was getting Rosa the pin to set up her title match next week and they accomplished that perfectly well. Hirsch is someone who makes for a good roadblock on the way to Rosa’s next big showdown with Baker and she was hardly beaten up badly here. They did what they needed to do here so call it a success.

Post match Tony Schiavone (get that man a raise) announces that Rosa’s title shot will be inside a steel cage next week.

Britt Baker laughs at the idea of Rosa getting her shot because she is going to show just why she was the real winner of the Lights Out match.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

TNT Title: Sammy Guevara vs. Scorpio Sky

Sammy is defending and some forearms to the face rock Sky to start. A dropkick sends Sky outside and it’s time to set up a table at ringside. Sammy knocks him onto said table but the 630 only hits table (which EXPLODES on impact) to put himself in a lot of trouble. Cue Tay Conti to check on Sammy and we take a break. Back with Sammy slugging away but getting knocked outside again. Conti checks on him again but has to get into Paige Van Zant’s face at ringside.

A backbreaker puts Guevara down again back inside and we hit a reverse chinlock. Guevara fights up and starts chopping away, setting up a top rope cutter for two. Sky’s TKO is broken up and it’s the GTH to knock him out to the apron. Instead of covering, Sammy loads up the shooting star press but only hits raised knees. Cue Ethan Page for a distraction so Conti goes after her, only to have Van Zant send her into the steps. The distraction lets Sky hit a heck of a TKO to win the title at 11:50.

Rating: B. Another good match here and it should set up Sky as the sacrificial lamb to Wardlow next week. It makes sense with Sammy having been banged up in so many title defenses as of late and eventually was going to get caught. The title change closing the show makes it feel a bit bigger and it is likely a step in what feels like a bigger story.

Post match Sky hits Sammy with the title and Conti gets thrown inside. Van Zant kicks Conti in the head and signs her AEW contract on the back of Conti’s jeans to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. AEW puts on another pretty strong show this week, though you could feel that a little bit of the energy was gone after Revolution. That’s completely fine as you are only going to be able to do so much after that kind of a pay per view and they have stuff set up for the future. Another good effort though, with some big talking segments and action to back it up.

Results
Hangman Page b. Dante Martin – Buckshot Lariat
Bryan Danielson/Jon Moxley b. Work Horsemen – LeBell Lock to Drake
Pac b. Wheeler Yuta – Brutalizer
Jurassic Express b. Acclaimed – Tail Whip to Bowens
Thunder Rosa b. Leyla Hirsch – Fire thunder driver
Scorpio Sky b. Sammy Guevara – TKO

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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Revolution 2022
Date: March 6, 2022
Location: Addition Financial Arena, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

We’re back on pay per view and that is usually a pretty good thing for AEW. This is an absolutely packed show with a twelve match (counting the Buy In) card, featuring a double main event of Hangman Page defending the World Title against Adam Cole and a dog collar match between CM Punk and MJF. Let’s get to it.

Buy-In: Leyla Hirsch vs. Kris Statlander

Grudge match. Leyla wastes no time in hammering away and taking Statlander down. They head outside, with Hirsch tying the arm up in the steps and crushing it hard for a nasty visual. Back in and Statlander gets in a shot of her own, only to get tied in the Tree of Woe. The arm is tied in the ropes again and there’s a running dropkick to said arm, knocking Statlander back to the mat.

Statlander avoids a shot though and it’s a bodyscissors to keep Hirsch down. That’s broken up and they slug it out until Statlander grabs a backbreaker for a breather. Hirsch gets sent into the corner for a running kick to the face and it’s time to head to the apron. A running hurricanrana sends Statlander crashing to the floor, though Hirsch’s back is banged up too. Back in and the cross armbreaker has Statlander in trouble until she gets a leg on the rope.

Hirsch changes plans by trying a rollup out of the corner, only to get caught in an electric chair faceplant. Something like a Michinoku Driver gives Statlander two so Hirsch rolls outside. That lets her pull out a spare turnbuckle, which goes upside Statlander’s head, because the referee isn’t very good at his job. The moonsault gives Hirsch the pin at 9:51.

Rating: C. I’m not sure why this needed to be on the card tonight as it felt more like something you put on Dynamite. Hirsch continues to impress as there is always a place for a wrestler/grappler like her. Statlander even got cheated out of the match so they can go to a rematch if they want, which is not the worst idea.

Buy-In: Hook vs. QT Marshall

Hook starts fast and throws him down, setting up something like an STF to send Marshall out to the floor. Marshall tries to get in a few shots but gets sent outside for a suplex (Taz: “POP THOSE HIPS!”) on the floor. Back in and Marshall manages to send him face first into the buckle, setting up a jumping elbow for two. Marshall goes up top but gets suplexed back down for a big crash. Another suplex sets up Redrum to finish Marshall at 5:01.

Rating: C. I believe that is Hook’s longest match to date and he continues to do his thing very well. He doesn’t have the most impressive look but there is something to be said for the idea of having someone with a unique presentation who is a killer once the bell rings. At some point he will have to move up to better competition, but for now, things are working well for him in these short bursts. Plus, who doesn’t love to see Marshall get beaten up?

Buy-In: House of Black vs. Penta Obscuro/Erick Redbeard/Pac

Matthews and Obscuro start things off and stare at each other for a long time. Penta does the CERO MIEDO and gets his fingers bent backwards. Matthews gets taken down but neither can hit a low superkick. A rollup gives Penta two and they both flip up to their feet. King and Redbeard come in to exchange a bunch of shoulders, setting up the slugout. Everything breaks down with the other four brawling on the floor, leaving Redbeard to dropkick King to the floor.

Redbeard follows to take out the rest of the House, including a running crossbody to King. Back in and Black hits a Cannonball in the corner for tow on Penta as we settle down again. Penta gets over for the tag to Pac, who fires off some kicks. Matthews catches him with a hanging DDT though and now it’s Pac being caught in the corner for the rotating beatdown. Black grabs a headscissors to keep Pac in trouble, with Matthews distraction the referee so he doesn’t see Pac make the rope.

The beating continues but Pac finally gets in a shot of his own, allowing the hot tag to Penta. That means house can really be cleaned, including a catapult sending Penta into a Canadian Destroyer to Matthews. A low superkick rocks King and we slow down a bit with Matthews mostly done. Redbeard manages a slingshot hilo to crush Matthews but Black comes in off a blind tag.

Some kicks rock Redbeard but he muscles Black up for the suplex into the corner. Pac comes back in with a springboard missile dropkick and the poisonrana to drop Black on his head. Everything breaks down and it’s Redbeard vs. King in the big forearm slugout. Redbeard kicks him in the face but gets picked up for Death Valley Driver. Redbeard and King head outside, leaving the other four to pull themselves to their feet for the slugout.

The House gets taken down, including a snap German suplex to Black and a big running flip dive to Matthews. Penta can’t hit Made In Japan on the apron as Black slips out and hits his own kick. That earns Penta kicks Black right back, setting up the Fear Factor on the apron. Back in and Matthews stomps Pac and Black kicks Pac in the face (What Fear Factor?), only to have Redbeard come back in for the staredown.

Redbeard grabs Matthews by the throat but Black kicks him in the face. That doesn’t bother Redbeard, who grabs Black by the throat for the chokeslam, only to get misted in the face. A running knee from Matthews sets up the over the shoulder piledriver to give King the pin at 17:22.

Rating: B. This felt like it belonged on a fairly big show, or as a really featured Rampage main event. Redbeard did feel like he was there to take the pin until Fenix gets back for the real showdown and that isn’t a bad idea. This feud has some legs, even if Black’s creepy/evil stuff might start getting a little tiresome. Adding in Matthews helps keep thing fresh too, and the quality of the match makes up for most of the issues from the buildup.

A video from Draft Kings tells us how to gamble on the show and we’re ready to go.

Chris Jericho vs. Eddie Kingston

They’re starting big and Eddie goes right to it with a half and half to rock Jericho early. A neckbreaker gives Kingston two and we’re off to the early chinlock. Jericho breaks that up and takes him to the floor for a rake to the eye to take over. Back in and an enziguri staggers Eddie but he pops up to chop it out. Kingston goes with the Kenta Kobashi chops and then bites Jericho’s head in the corner.

Jericho slips out and hits some corner clotheslines, setting up the top rope hurricanrana for two. With that not working, Jericho unhooks a turnbuckle pad but doesn’t seem to like his decision. They fight to the apron with Jericho suplexing him down to the floor in a big crash. Back in and Jericho hits a German suplex and gives us a big evil grin. The Lionsault (with Eddie having to slide over) sets up a Lionsault without too much spring to Kingston’s face for two. Kingston gets in a desperation lariat but Jericho pulls him into the Walls.

The rope is eventually reached and it’s Kingston coming back with a Saito suplex. The spinning backfist gives Kingston two and he can’t believe the kickout. Kingston’s northern lights bomb is countered into a Codebreaker for two and now Jericho cant believe it. Kingston gets up and gets caught with another suplex, only to pop up. Jericho cuts him off with another Codebreaker but the Judas Effect misses. A pair of spinning backfists drop Jericho and the Stretch Plum makes Jericho tap at 12:19.

Rating: B. This is a good example of how to put someone over and it was long overdue. Kingston has been knocking at the door of success for a long time now and Jericho is the kind of person to put him over. They beat each other up well and Kingston got the win that he has been needing for a very long time now. Hard hitting opener with the feel good ending.

Eddie looking shocked that he won and even checking with the referee is a great touch. Jericho won’t shake hands, even after he promised to do so.

Here’s the card you already paid to see.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. ReDRagon vs. Jurassic Express

The Express is defending and this is one fall to a finish. Jungle Boy gets taken into the Bucks’ corner to start as Bobby Fish will not stop running his mouth. A double slam of some kind is escaped and it’s Luchasaurus coming in to chop away at Matt Jackson. ReDRagon gets chopped down too but all four challengers bail before Luchasaurus can dive. They don’t get away from Jungle Boy’s dive though and the champs are in control early.

Back in and some double teaming puts Luchasaurus down on the floor, meaning the big group beatdown is on. Back in and a running neckbreaker onto a knee puts Jungle Boy down for two, with Fish making a save to annoy Matt. ReDRagon’s double belly to back suplex is escaped and Nick tags himself in. Jungle Boy gets sent outside but blocks Nick’s apron kick, leaving ReDRagon and the Bucks to argue some more.

That’s enough to allow the hot tag to Luchasaurus so house can be cleaned, including some kicks to the Bucks. A moonsault off the apron takes out ReDRagon but the Bucks are back up to kick Luchasaurus down. Luchasaurus is fine enough to plant Matt for two, leaving Matt holding his back. Matt winds up on Luchasaurus’ shoulders, allowing Jungle Boy to run the corner and hit a top rope clothesline for two.

Luchasaurus gets kicked down but O’Reilly is back in to kick away at Matt. Jungle Boy goes to the apron to kick Matt in the back but ReDRagon grabs a DDT, which is kicked into a wheelbarrow suplex for two. O’Reilly hits the top rope knee to Jungle Boy’s leg and the kneebar goes on. That’s broken up as well and Luchasaurus chokeslams Nick off the top. O’Reilly comes in with a front chancery to Luchasaurus but Jungle Boy comes off the top with a shooting star to the two of them for the break.

ReDRagon goes high/low on Jungle Boy for two but it’s Matt coming back in to go after Jungle Boy this time. O’Reilly has to make a save of his own and Matt is annoyed, only to miss More Bang For Your Buck. A hurricanrana into a German suplex takes the Bucks down and it’s Luchasaurus hitting his big dive to the floor. Back in and the Throwassic Express finishes Matt to retain the titles at 18:36.

Rating: B+. This was the wild spotfest that it needed to be, as you know what you are getting with the Bucks in a three way match. The Express needed to win here to give them a fall over the Bucks to establish themselves as more of a dominant team, but it won’t matter if the focus shifts to the Bucks’ issues with ReDRagon. Hopefully that isn’t the case, but there is a bit of a precedent of things going in that direction.

Video on the Face of the Revolution ladder match.

Keith Lee vs. Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Wardlow vs. Ricky Starks vs. Orange Cassidy vs. Christian Cage

Ladder match for a future TNT Title shot. The three monsters clear the ring to start so Cassidy comes back in for the lazy kicks. Cassidy tries to climb up the people to get to the brass ring, only to be sent outside. The others come back in and it’s Starks getting up and climbing the ladder. Cassidy breaks that up and tries the very slow climb, allowing Christian to make the save.

With Cassidy sent outside, Christian puts a ladder in the corner but Lee does his rise up spot and crossbodies Christian and Starks at the same time. Cassidy’s attempt at a hurricanrana is blocked so Lee can swing him into the others. Lee goes for the ladder but Wardlow is here for the staredown. That lets Hobbs run the two of them over with the ladder but here is Starks for the Team Taz double run up the ladder. Cassidy makes the save this time and puts the ladder around his head for the helicopter.

Hobbs and Lee grab the ladder though (giving us a great “uh oh” face from Cassidy) and Cassidy is in trouble. They lift it into the air….so Cassidy skins the cat to land on the raised ladder and stands up to get a hand on the ring, only to get crotched back down (that was one of the most creative ladder match spots I’ve seen in a long time). The ladder is laid in the corner and Hobbs superplexes Cassidy back down for the huge crash.

Christian is back in now but Starks pulls the ladder away and dives through it with a spar to cut Christian down. Wardlow and Hobbs go up the ladder, with Starks and Cassidy climbing on Wardlow’s back…but not being able to stop them. Everyone winds up on the pair of ladders until Christian and Cassidy crash down. Starks and Lee go down too so it’s Hobbs and Wardlow fighting on top until the both fall too, leaving everyone down. The three monsters are back up and Lee Uncle Phil Biels Cassidy to the floor in a nasty crash. Everyone else winds up on the floor too so Wardlow and Hobbs go after a ladder on the stage.

They actually rip it in two with Hobbs knocking him down, as JR suggests they GO BACK TO THE RING. Lee and Hobbs wind up by the announcers’ desk, with Wardlow coming in to shove them both off the stage and through a table. Back in and Starks takes Christian down but it’s Danhausen to curse Starks, allowing Christian to make the save. Christian goes up but Starks makes another save, leaving Wardlow to powerbomb Christian hard. Wardlow powerbombs Starks off the ladder onto a bridged ladder and pulls down the ring for the win at 17:08.

Rating: B. It’s another spot fest with one big crash after another. Sometimes you need a car crash match like this one and the hosses getting to throw people around was a change of pace. Wardlow winning makes sense and we should be in for a good match when he faces (likely) Sammy Guevara. That Cassidy spot was a great bonus and I had another good time here.

Tony Schiavone brings out Shane Strickland to officially sign his AEW contract. Swerve is happy to be here and could tell us about the titles he is going to win, but first he needs to ask: who’s house? The fans say Swerve’s house and he loves them too. This was expected and is still an awesome sight.

TBS Title: Jade Cargill vs. Tay Conti

Cargill, with Mark Sterling, is defending and gets played to the ring. Conti tries to take it the mat to start but Cargill powers her way out. That means it’s time to mock Conti’s martial arts again so Conti sends her into the corner for some running shots to the face. A swinging DDT connects but Cargill’s feet are under the rope. Cargill heads outside so Conti goes up for a big flip dive, which takes Sterling out.

That lets Cargill kick Conti in the face to take over but Conti kicks her down back inside. Jaded and the DDTay are broken up so Cargill grabs a rollup, only to be kicked off into a chair as held up by an appearing Anna Jay. A DDT gives Conti two but Cargill is back with the Eye of the Storm for two of her own. Jade hits a frog splash of all things for two more so Conti comes back with a piledriver for the save. Cargill kicks her off and Conti might hit a camera in the corner. That’s enough to set up Jaded to retain the title at 6:50.

Rating: C+. Cargill continues to wrestle beyond her experience and Conti was a good challenger here. There might not have been the most drama as Conti felt like the challenger of the week, but she got in some good stuff of her own here. Cargill is going to need a big challenger coming up, but Conti did rather well for a spot like this.

Video on CM Punk vs. MJF. They started off with a war of words but MJF keeps getting the better of him, meaning it is time to get bloody and violent in a dog collar match.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. CM Punk

MJF wears a robe to the ring but Punk comes out to Misaria Cantare, his old Ring of Honor theme. They pull each other closer by the chain with Punk missing a big swing. Punk chokes in the ropes before raining down rights and lefts. A big chain shot is broken up and MJF gets two off a Cheeky Nandos kick. Punk is back up with a running knee in the corner but the bulldog is countered with a pull of the chain. Punk’s back already has chain marks across it and there’s a chain shot to the head.

That leaves Punk VERY busted open so MJF asks for a censored mic. He tells Punk to quit on the people like Punk quick on him but Punk tell him what he can eat. Punk uses the chain to pull MJF off the middle rope and there’s a Russian legsweep with the chain. MJF is back up with a sleeper using the chain but Punk slips out, only to get caught in the Salt of the Earth. That’s broken up as well and Punk grabs the Anaconda Vice, which is escaped as well.

MJF sends him to the apron but the Heatseeker is countered to leave them both down again. A chained knee shot to MJF’s face busts him open too and it’s time to wrap the chain around said bleeding face. They head outside with Punk pounding away against the barricade. A crash into the steps bangs up Punk’s leg though and they’re both down. Back in and Punk loads up the GTS but the leg gives out to give MJF a breather.

MJF hits the knee with a chained fist and they go to the apron, where Punk hits a Tombstone piledriver to knock MJF silly. Punk’s knee is further banged up though and they’re both down again. MJF gets in another shot of his own and it’s time to bring in the thumbtacks. The running knee in the corner hits Punk this time but he bites the hand to get out of the bulldog.

Punk’s suplex onto the tacks is blocked and the Pepsi Plunge is as well so MJF superplexes him near the tacks (fair enough as they’re on the other side of the ring) for two. MJF has come unhooked from the chain so he calls Wardlow in as the chain is linked up again. Wardlow comes down but can’t find the ring, allowing Punk to hit the GTS, with MJF falling into the tacks. Punk looks at Wardlow, who puts the ring (which was in the other pocket) down on the apron and walks off. Punk pulls MJF up so MJF spits at him, earning a ring shot to the face for the pin at 26:22.

Rating: A-. In the words of Stu Nahan from Rocky, “they look like they’ve been in a war, these two.” That’s the feeling I got from Punk as he was sitting there after the win and that is how it was supposed to feel. I don’t know if they are going to have another match out of this as it felt like a blowoff, but one more time could be rather great. Above all else, this felt like two people out to hut each other and Punk survived in the end, which is all you could ask for. Awesome match and almost as great as it was hyped up as being.

Punk motions he wants the title.

We recap Thunder Rosa vs. Britt Baker for the Women’s Title. Baker says she is the women’s division and Rosa says she wants to be champion.

Women’s Title: Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa

Baker, with Jamie Hayter and Rebel, is defending. They fight over a lockup to start and go to the mat before fighting into the corner. Baker grabs a hammerlock but Rosa fights up, only to be driven up against the ropes. A neckbreaker drops Rosa and Jamie/Rebel mock her from the floor.

Rosa fights up again but Baker hammers her down into a rather appropriate hammerlock. Back up and Rosa hits a running kick into a northern lights suplex for two as the fans are trying to get into this. Rosa fights up with some elbows in the corner but gets butterfly suplexed for two. A superplex drops Baker again but Rosa holds on and lifts her up into a fireman’s carry swung into a faceplant.

The sliding lariat gets two on Baker but she’s back with a knockdown of her own. Lockjaw doesn’t work though and Baker goes to the corner, where a super Air Raid Crash gets two more. Rosa is back up with a Tombstone but Rebel has the referee to prevent a count. That means a choke to make Baker tap, but Rebel has the referee again. This time Rosa spears Rebel through the ropes, allowing Baker to hit the Stomp on the way back in for the pin to retain at 17:19.

Rating: C+. These two were in a terrible spot as there was no way to follow that dog collar match. It also doesn’t help that this was a pretty straight match as the followup to their all time brawl last year. It’s a weirdly built feud and this felt like a big time TV match instead of some major pay per view war. Not bad, but the fans weren’t into it and the ending was flat.

We recap Jon Moxley vs. Bryan Danielson. Moxley is back after rehab and Danielson wants the two of them to join forces and raise up the next generation. That’s a possibility, but Moxley can’t stand next to someone until he bleeds with them.

Jon Moxley vs. Bryan Danielson

Danielson wrestles him down to start so Moxley gets up for a breather. Then it’s Moxley driving him to the ropes so Danielson goes to the apron for a breather of his own. Moxley wins a slugout and drops Danielson with an elbow before firing off some YES Kicks. Danielson reverses one of them into a dragon screw legwhip though and now it’s time for the REAL YES Kicks.

More kicks have Moxley bailing to the floor before he comes back in and gets kicked in the corner. A shot to the ribs slows Moxley down and the running kick in the corner makes it worse. Danielson: “HOW’S THAT MOX?” We hit the guillotine but Moxley gets out and sends him outside for the suicide dive. Danielson is ready though and goes back inside, leaving Moxley to stick the landing.

That means Danielson can try a dive but Moxley blocks that too, setting up the slugout on the floor. The exchange of elbows busts Moxley open hard and Danielson starts striking away at the body. Moxley fights up and gets in a shot of his own though to put them both down. Danielson takes him to the corner and rakes the back, setting up a big superplex for two. Moxley is back up with a sleeper but Danielson backflips into a dragon sleeper, which is reversed into some elbows to the head.

A cross armbreaker has Danielson in trouble but he reverses into an armbar of his own, sending Moxley to the ropes. Danielson’s stomps are loaded up but Moxley ties up the legs so they can kick each other in the face. Moxley gets the better of it and puts on the bulldog choke, only to have Danielson roll out for a change.

The running knee gives Danielson two so he stomps on Moxley’s head. Now it’s a triangle choke to Moxley, complete with elbows to the head. Moxley gets creative by grabbing the beard but Danielson punches him in the face over and over. Somehow Moxley manages to flip over into a cradle though and Danielson is pinned at 21:02.

Rating: B. This was another bloody, violent fight with those shots to Moxley’s eyes being a nearly scary visual. What mattered here was letting both guys beat on each other until Moxley stole the win, as this was almost all about Danielson. Heck of a fight, but it was the secondary bloody war of the night.

Post match the fight stays on so referees come out. William Regal of all people debuts and gets in between them, but Moxley goes after Danielson again. Regal headbutts Moxley and slaps Danielson, which is enough to get them to shake hands. Well yeah that certainly worked.

Here’s what’s coming on Dynamite.

Darby Allin/Sting/Sammy Guevara vs. Andrade El Idolo/Isiah Kassidy/Matt Hardy

Texas Tornado match in Florida. Allin gets in another mini movie, showing the AHFO’s funeral and asking if he is crazy. It’s a brawl to start with Sting and Allin putting Andrade’s manager Jose in a trashcan so Allin can take him out with a suicide dive. Andrade makes the save though and hits a running suplex drop to send Sammy ribs first onto the barricade.

House is cleaned and Andrade rolls Allin up before tossing him into the corner in a kind of one armed buckle bomb. Sting and Hardy fight on the floor and Andrade misses a charge into the barricade. Cue Marq Quen to uneven the odds, setting up Silly String to plant Sammy on the floor. The fight heads into the crowd with Sting sending Hardy into the barricade. Butcher and Blade run in to jump Sting as Sammy fights Private Party on the stage.

Sammy goes onto a piece of the set with Kassidy, setting up a super Spanish Fly onto a pair of tables (with only one breaking). Butcher and Blade set up a bunch of tables but Sting fights up and hammers on the two of them. Sting takes Andrade back to the tables and hits a splash off the balcony to drive Andrade through all four of them in the HE’S 62 YEARS OLD spot of the match. Back in and Matt beats on Allin with a chair, only to have Sting make the save with a Scorpion Death Drop. Allin goes up and misses the Coffin Drop but gets the pin anyway at 13:12.

Rating: C+. I’m not big on the wild brawls and that was the case again here. Sting can still do all of those big dives, though I cringe a bit more every time he does one. Throw in Sammy and Kassidy’s scary landing on the stage and this felt like hoping no one was injured rather than an entertaining match, which is not a good sign. The action was fun and it was a crazy fight, but I could have done without it.

We recap Hangman Page vs. Adam Cole for the World Title. Page is champion, Cole wants to be World Champion. They came up in wrestling together and now Cole wants to be where Page is.

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Adam Cole

Cole is challenging and comes out in Halo themed gear, though JR one ups him by not recognizing the AEW World Title (JR: “Is that a new title belt?”). Fans: “LET’S GO ADAM/ADAM SUCKS!” Ok that’s a great one. Page chops him up against the ropes as the fans want Adam to f*** him up. More chops in the corner set up a short arm lariat to put Cole down and Page adds a running boot to the head from the floor.

Cole manages to send him into the steps a few times though and it’s time to start on Page’s arm. Back in and we hit the arm crank before Cole starts talking about how Page will never be him. Page slaps him in the face and blocks a Panama Sunrise to put them both down. Cole gets sent to the apron so Page clotheslines him down, only to hurt the arm again. An apron powerbomb sets up a moonsault to the floor but the Buckshot doesn’t work for Page.

Instead Cole hits a Liger Bomb (with JR testing Excalibur about the difference between a powerbomb and a Liger Bomb and sounding defeated when Excalibur got it right) and goes up, only to get shoved back. Cole superkicks him out of the air but Page is back with the Deadeye for two. Fans: “THIS IS ADAM!” That’s somehow even better than the first. Back up and they trade shots to the face until Cole pulls him into a crossface. Page is right there for the rope so Cole slams him arm first onto the apron.

Back in and a Tombstone gets two (and JR is NOT happy with the kickout) but Page is back up with some shots to the face. Cole reverses a suplex into the brainbuster onto the knee for two and is frustrated at the kickout. Fans: “FIGHT FOR ADAM!” The go up top again with Page hitting a backflip World’s Strongest Slam for two more but here is ReDRagon to break up the Buckshot. Cole superkicks Page to the floor and it’s a Panama Sunrise on the floor, drawing what sounded like a HOLY ADAM chant.

Back in and Cole can’t believe another kickout so ReDRagon offers a distraction, allowing Cole to kick Page low. Another Panama Sunrise sets up the Boom for two but Page is back up again. The Buckshot is countered with a superkick but Page drops down to avoid another Boom. ReDRagon puts a table at ringside, only to have Page hit the Deadeye off the apron to put Cole through it instead.

Cue the Dark Order to check on Page and brawl off with ReDRagon, leaving Page to hit the Buckshot for two, as Cole gets his hand on the ropes. With nothing else working, Page uses his belt to tie Cole to the rope and fires off some superkicks (with Cole losing a tooth). Cole gets loose but Page knocks him down again, setting up his own Boom. Another Buckshot retains the title at 25:41.

Rating: B-. This was a pay per view main event, but it was a pay per view main event at the end of a VERY long show. The crowd chants were great and it certainly wasn’t bad, but this wasn’t exactly going out on a high note. Page does get a good win though and moves on to something bigger, though I wasn’t jazzed with this match coming in and they didn’t do anything to make it better here.

Page shows respect and celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Another excellent AEW show, but the crowd was starting to get worn down in the middle. I can absolutely sympathize with them on that as counting the Buy-In, this was about five hours with very few chances to breathe in the middle. AEW really could use a lesson in less is more, as there was a lot that could have been cut, or at least trimmed, on here to get done at least half an hour earlier.

Now that being said, this was another great AEW pay per view, with no bad matches, an instant classic in the dog collar match and an awesome moment with Regal debuting. AEW knows how to put together the action on these big shows, but they do need to learn how to present them a bit better. Fix some of those problems and this is a masterpiece, but for now I’ll settle for just a classic.

Results
Leyla Hirsch b. Kris Statlander – Moonsault
Hook b. QT Marshall – Redrum
House Of Black b. Erick Redbeard/Penta Obscuro/Pac – Over the shoulder piledriver to Redbeard
Eddie Kingston b. Chris Jericho – Stretch Plum
Jurassic Express b. Young Bucks and ReDRagon – Throwassic Express to Matt Jackson
Wardlow won the Face of the Revolution ladder match
Jade Cargill b. Tay Conti – Jaded
CM Punk b. Maxwell Jacob Friedman – Punch with the Dynamite Diamond Ring
Britt Baker b. Thunder Rosa – Curb stomp
Jon Moxley b Bryan Danielson – Rollup
Sting/Darby Allin/Sammy Guevara b. Matt Hardy/Isiah Kassidy/Andrade El Idolo – Coffin Drop to Hardy
Hangman Page b. Adam Cole – Buckshot Lariat

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It’s back to the pay per view schedule for AEW and that is a great thing to hear. AEW has a pretty awesome track record for pay per views and there is a good chance that it will do the same here. This time is a bit different though as there is a staggering twelve match card with three matches taking place on the Buy In. The positive thing is that the matches look good, but dang that is a lot. Let’s get to it.

Buy-In: QT Marshall vs. Hook

We’ll start off with one of the fun ones here as Hook has taken AEW by storm in his still short career. What seemed to start off as little more than a big joke has turned into a pretty great run from Hook, who has smashed a variety of people without overstaying his welcome once. I believe this will be his first live match though and that could make for a new challenge.

I mean, I say challenge as seriously as it can be meant as it’s Marshall across the ring from him, meaning Hook wins this in a walk. There is no reason to expect this match to go longer than about four minutes, with Hook grabbing Redrum for the win. Marshall should be good for helping Hook get to an ok match, but that’s about the extent of his usefulness in this spot.

Buy-In: Leyla Hirsch vs. Kris Statlander

This one is already more interesting as you have two such different styles. Statlander has taken the gloves off to insult her former friend while Hirsch continues to look ready to maul various humans at any given time. That should make for a showdown, though I’m not entirely sure how well these two are going to work together. Statlander can do well, but there are also times where she doesn’t quite click.

I’ll take Hirsch here, as she is rather perfect in her role as the tiny killing machine who could pull Statlander into a variety of knots. Statlander has promised a new version of herself, but that does not necessarily mean she is going to win. Neither would seem likely for a future title shot, but a Hirsch push sounds like the better option of the two. Either way I would expect at least one rematch, but Hirsch takes the first one.

Buy-In: House of Black vs. Pac/Penta Obscuro/Erick Redbeard

I’m not sure why this match is on the Buy-in, as it feels like it could headline either a Dynamite or Rampage and get more attention. Redbeard is substituting for the injured Rey Fenix, so while I can understand wanting to keep the feud warm until Fenix is back, it would seem that there are some better options than going this way. Still though, it should be a heck of a fight.

There is no reason for the newly expanded House of Black to lose here so we’ll say they make up for their loss in the recent tag match. If nothing else, Redbeard can be there to take a fall while keeping Pac and Obscuro strong on the way to Fenix’s return. This should be a wild brawl if they stick to what works best for them, but hopefully it gets the time that it needs and deserves.

TBS Title: Jade Cargill(c) vs. Tay Conti

The Cargill express continues as she mows down one challenger after another. That is going to make for a special moment when someone finally dethrones her and the question becomes who gets be the giant slayer. Conti is certainly a popular star and needs to win something big at some point, but I’m not sure if this is the spot where she finally breaks through.

I’ll take Cargill to retain here, as that is the more logical result. While I could see Conti being the one, Cargill seems more destined to eventually win the Women’s Title. I don’t know if she drops this title first, but she needs to be kept strong on the way there. At this point that means defeating Conti, who continues to be able to stay crazy popular despite rarely wining anything important.

Face Of The Revolution Ladder Match

Well of course it’s a ladder match and this time the winner gets a shot at the TNT Title. The appeal here is the amount of hosses involved in the thing, which should serve for some interesting options. For once I don’t think there are any names who can be immediately eliminated, which makes this all the more interesting. It’s the sign of a well put together match and AEW has set this up well.

I think I’ll take…Christian Cage to win here actually, as he really needs something to do. Keith Lee is a viable option as well as he came in with such fanfare, but he hasn’t exactly done much since his big debut toss of Isiah Kassidy. Neither of the Team Taz members make the most sense and Wardlow already has a story with MJF. Orange Cassidy….please no, so that leaves Cage in a prediction that is likely to go wrong.

AHFO vs. Sting/Darby Allin/Sammy Guevara

There is something very telling about this match. Earlier tonight I watched Andrade El Idolo, Sammy Guevara and Darby Allin tear the house down in an amazing triple threat that served as the main final push towards this match. That was great, but the idea of Matt Hardy being involved drags the rest of it down. His recent Jeff Hardy teases make it even worse and I’m not exactly interested in seeing the match.

The good thing is that it shouldn’t be a hard pick as I’ll take Sting and company for the win. You don’t have someone like Kassidy involved here to have his team win, so I’ll go with Allin pinning Kassidy so Sting can celebrate his first match in Orlando in however many years it is since he left Impact. This is another match that feels like it could be on Dynamite though and that isn’t a good sign for the show.

Jon Moxley vs. Bryan Danielson

This was all but set for Full Gear last year when Moxley had to step away for rehab. That was far more important, but I still want to see what these two can do. Moxley may be a brawler most of the time, but he knows how to make a match feel big. They have done that here, as there is almost a will they or won’t they vibe to the whole thing. The question is can Danielson get Moxley to join up with him, and we probably find that out here.

I think they do get to that point eventually, so we’ll go with Danielson winning here, likely through cheating. I’m not sure if they are going to be able to come up with a way to get the fans to boo Moxley, but it might work out if he gets to cut the right kind of promo. As much as I don’t want some new heel power alliance, it might be the best thing for everyone with Danielson having already run through his World Title shots and Moxley needing something to do.

Women’s Title: Britt Baker(c) vs. Thunder Rosa

We’ve been waiting for this one for about a year now, as these two went to war against each other back at St. Patrick’s Slam. Rosa won there, which should mean that she is able to do it again and get the title that she never picked up before. This is the match that has been set up for so long now that it has kind of hurt Baker’s reign, as you knew the rematch with Rosa was hanging over everything.

Despite an instinct to say otherwise, I’ll go with Rosa winning the title here. It’s kind of interesting that the match feels like it is coming in cold despite the history, as Rosa hasn’t done much lately. Other than pinning Baker this week on Dynamite, I can’t think of any major win that she has had in recent weeks. Then again I’ve never quite gotten how the rankings work, but Rosa’s 4-0 is better than Hirsch’s and Deeb’s because…well because she’s Rosa and is winning the title here.

Tag Team Titles: Jurassic Express(c) vs. Young Bucks vs. ReDRagon

I’m not sure what to think of this one but the Bucks getting another title shot is one of those things that shouldn’t be a big surprise. At the same time, it doesn’t feel like it is soon enough to put the titles back on them, making them more of a possible spoiler or road block than anything else. That leaves you with two potential winners, either of whom could leave with the titles.

I think I’m going to go with Jurassic Express retaining here, as they just haven’t held the titles for very long yet. If they lost here, they would have the shortest reign in the history of the titles to date and that is not something you want to see. ReDRagon will probably get the championships one day, but for now I think Jurassic Express retains. They can even do so with the Bucks costing ReDRagon the fall to continue the Bucks’ emotional issues that are oh so interesting.

Chris Jericho vs. Eddie Kingston

Here we have another grudge match for Jericho, who thankfully has turned heel after so many weeks of seemingly being ready to make the jump. That should make for an interesting showdown, as Kingston can bring it on the mic and does well enough in the ring to back it up. At some point he has to win something though, and that seems to be the point we are reaching now.

I’ll go out on a limb here and say they give Kingston the win here, as it is LONG overdue to give him a big victory, which has even been the story of the feud. At the end of the day, Jericho does not need to win another match in his career and will not lose a step, so have him put Kingston over and give him his big win merit badge. It needs to happen and this is as good of a time as any.

World Title: Hangman Page(c) vs. Adam Cole

I know the tradition is that the World Title headlines the show, but come on in this case. There are only so many ways you can present Page vs. Cole as the biggest match on the card and it seems to be the case. This just does not feel like a main event match, as Cole has felt like just the next challenger instead of some big moment. Maybe it was having him lose to Orange Cassidy and then moving into the title feud?

Page retains here and I don’t think there is all that much drama. There is almost no reason to believe that Cole is taking the title here as Page gets to retain the title on pay per view. The match is probably going to be a good one, assuming they don’t go all the way with one of Cole’s ridiculous long matches. I really hope this doesn’t headline, because there is something that is just flat out better.

CM Punk vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Like this could have been anything else. This has been one of the best feuds AEW has presented yet (if not its best in history) and I want to see these two get so violence that they cannot go much further. Some of the angles that have taken place have been nothing short of amazing and now they need to stick the landing (or at least this part of the landing) to set up the big blowoff match. That means this needs to have a winner and I’m not sure where to go.

I’ll flip a coin here and go with Punk, as his win sets up the big blowoff, unless they have some other way for MJF to cheat and steal another win. What matters here is the violence and blood that need to come with a dog collar match and we should be in for a great one. Every important step in this feud has been pure gold and if they can find that again on the big stage, we are in for a treat.

Overall Thoughts

There is a lot of potential on this card, but it might be a hair too long. AEW has a tendency to try and cram in too much and that might be the case again here. That being said, the top part of this show is looking pretty awesome and there are several matches that could be nothing short of great. The dog collar match seems to be the big feature attraction, and if that works out, this show is going to be the latest on AEW’s incredible list.

Dynamite
Date: March 2, 2022
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

This is an interesting show as we have both the go home show for Revolution but Tony Khan himself is also making a major announcement. That could go a lot of different ways and I’m curious to see what he has next. Other than that, we need the final push towards Sunday and we should be in for something good. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Tony Schiavone is in the ring with Tony Khan for the big announcement. Khan talks about how far AEW has come in three years and how proud he is of everyone, including the fans. He has also been a fan of another company that started twenty years ago called Ring of Honor. That’s why he is proud to announce that as of today, he is officially the owner of Ring of Honor Wrestling. Two of the men in the first Ring of Honor main event are here in AEW and that’s our opening match.

That is a heck of a headline and I’m curious to see where it goes. That is the problem though, as I’m not sure exactly what is going on here. I would assume that Ring of Honor is the new developmental territory and that is not a bad idea. Use the name brand that you already have instead of making it another edition of Dark for a change. I’ll wait and see where this goes, but I’m cautiously optimistic, especially about that tape library.

Bryan Danielson vs. Christopher Daniels

Danielson takes him down to start but lets him up for some jumping jacks. Back up Daniels takes Danielson down for a change, meaning it’s Daniels doing his own jumping jacks. Daniels sends him outside for the Arabian moonsault and Danielson is rocked. They head back inside with Danielson hitting some kicks and tying up Daniels’ legs. Daniels fights out and gets to his feet, only to get German suplexed.

The cross armbreaker is broken up but Danielson reverses la majistral into a cradle of his own. They trade near falls until Daniels punches him in the face, making Danielson shake his head. They slug it out until Daniels gets dropped, though he is fine enough to catch Danielson on top. The Iconoclasm is broken up so Daniels loads up a hurricanrana, which is shoved off without too much effort. Daniels hits a release Rock Bottom and goes up for the BME, which is pulled into the triangle choke to give Danielson the win at 11:10.

Rating: C+. This was more of a nod to the big announcement than anything else but it was still a good way to start. Danielson wasn’t in any serious danger from Daniels, who still looks awesome at 51 years old. Sometimes you need a match against a still talented star who is going to make you work but not much beyond that and Danielson got such a match here.

Post match Danielson shakes the still out of it Daniels’ hand….but this isn’t Ring of Honor. He’s in AEW, and it’s time to kick someone’s head in. Danielson stomps away at Daniels until Jon Moxley comes out to break things up. Moxley talks about how he is on two different paths, one of which ends with him getting his head kicked in. The other path ends with him fighting in blood and he’s ready to start right now. The jacket comes off but Danielson bails.

Sting and Darby Allin are ready for Revolution and Rampage.

Casino Tag Team Battle Royal

There are fifteen teams but this seems to be a regular Royal Rumble format with ninety second intervals and both members needing to be eliminated. The winners join the Young Bucks and ReDRagon in a triple threat Tag Team Title match at Revolution. FTR and the returning Top Flight start things off with Top Flight flying around (oddly enough) early on. The Acclaimed is in at #3 and Caster’s rap eats up most of his time, talking about sending FTR to ROH and making things less popular than Glenn Jacobs’ tweets.

Since they don’t have much time, it’s the Dark Order (10/Alan Angels) in at #4 and get to clean house for a bit as the clock seems to be speeding up. Butcher and Blade are in at #5 to add in some power, meaning house is cleaned even more. Angels is tossed out and it’s the Varsity Blonds in at #6 as we take a break. Back with Bear Country having entered at #7 and Santana and Ortiz in at #8.

Santana and Ortiz go right after Bear Country and toss them without much trouble for the first team elimination. Caster is knocked out and it’s the Best Friends in at #9. Garrison is tossed and apparently Pillman was eliminated during the break, so the Blonds are gone too. More Dark Order (Evil Uno/Stu Grayson) are in at #10 as Blade gets kicked out. Three members of the Dark Order get rid of Butcher to eliminate another team. The Big Rig hits Grayson and it’s the Young Bucks in at #11 for the showdown with FTR.

That’s broken up by everyone else though and we take another break. Back again with the Wingmen in at #12 and the Gunn Club coming in at #13. The means a double Big Rig and the Bucks team up with FTR to get rid of the Club. Brock Anderson and Lee Johnson are in at #14 and get caught in the melee. Bowens goes after 10’s mask and tosses him out to get rid of the team. Chuck Taylor is tossed and the Wingmen go after them. There goes Grayson for a nasty crash and it’s 2.0 to complete the field at #15.

Anderson and Lee are tossed and Top Flight knocks Bowens out to get rid of the Acclaimed. Uno and Trent wind up on the apron, with Uno poking him in the eye and trying a piledriver, only to have Danhausen pop out from underneath the ring. The curse to Uno allows Trent to suplex Uno out, with Trent thanking Danhausen. Santana, Ortiz and 2.0 all wind up on the same apron for a fight with 2.0 being eliminated, followed by FTR getting rid of Santana and Ortiz.

Matt Jackson sends Trent into the corner ala Ric Flair and then clotheslines him off the apron ala Hulk Hogan. That leaves us with the Bucks, Top Flight and FTR as the final six so the slugout is on. Dante misses the Nosedive but grabs a hurricanrana on Cash, which eliminates both of them. Harwood tries a slingshot powerbomb on Matt but gets countered with another hurricanrana. Cue ReDRagon for a distraction, allowing the Bucks to superkick Harwood out.

That leaves the Bucks vs. Darius Martin, the latter of whom knocks Matt down. Darius hits a handspring elbow to Nick and a Spanish Fly to Matt but Brandon Cutler saves Nick. The Meltzer Driver is broken up though and now Nick is tossed. Darius throws Matt to the apron but not out, meaning Matt can backdrop him to the apron. Matt gets pulled to the apron as well, where he kicks Darius low and then superkicks him out for the win at 26:54.

Rating: B. The best thing about this match was that they kept things moving and didn’t let the match get bogged down. I like the Royal Rumble format better than the Casino style, though it makes me wonder why they bothered with the Casino name here. Anyway, it was a good showing for multiple teams, including Top Flight, but the Bucks winning was the only real choice.

Post match the Bucks and ReDRagon are pleased with each other but here is the Jurassic Express for the staredown.

Chris Jericho is ready to beat Eddie Kingston and, after explaining what a promo means, says he knows Eddie is going to fail again because he is scared of success. After Revolution, he is going to tell Eddie to GFY. Santana and Ortiz come in and fist bump Jericho, but won’t say if they’re good with him or not.

Here is a serious looking CM Punk for a chat. He has spent the last week asking himself if he is the bad guy, but he can’t be sure that MJF isn’t gaslighting him. Punk believes that those things happened to MJF, but he isn’t sure if he cares. There is a photo of a young Punk on the internet meeting Steve Austin, though Punk wasn’t hut when Austin took his ball and went home.

Punk has seen MJF do horrible things to people like Dean Malenko and insult the memory of Brian Pillman. When Punk arrived, MJF offered him a handshake but Punk didn’t accept it. Does that make him Dr. Frankenstein and MJF the Monster? Punk wants the MJF from last week to come out here for a conversation, so here is MJF, sans music. Punk talks about the horrible things he has done over the years, from pouring alcohol down an alcoholic’s throat, poured ashes from an urn onto another person, and insulted an addict until they lost their job.

This right here though is bigger than the two of them because it is about that eleven year old kid at home. This morning, Punk asked himself if he was the good guy and he said he sure was trying. Punk extends his hand but MJF isn’t sure about that. Instead MJF hugs him, which Punk eventually accepts. MJF kicks him low though and then takes off the jacket, revealing a shirt with the photo of MJF meeting Punk as a kid.

The beating is on, including the Dynamite Diamond to the face. Wardlow and Shawn Spears come out with the dog collar as Punk is busted open. Punk is hung with the collar and chain and is COVERED in blood. MJF says Punk is a stupid old man and calls himself the devil himself. Spears hangs Punk over the top rope until Darby Allin, Sting and Sammy Guevara run out for the save. That was a heck of an angle, with Punk being COVERED in blood. Vengeance should be sweet on Sunday and that is what they were going for here.

Keith Lee is interrupted by Team Taz and isn’t happy about it. They’ll see each other at Revolution.

Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter vs. Thunder Rosa/Mercedes Martinez

Rebel is here with Baker/Hayter. Baker gets double teamed into the corner to start but she comes back with a Sling Blade to Martinez. Hayter comes in and gets shouldered down but Rebel offers a distraction. That means a superkick can drop Martinez and we take a break. Back with Martinez taking Hayter down for two but Baker comes back in to forearm Martinez in the face.

A superkick puts Martinez down but she is able to get over to Rosa for the Baker showdown. They slug it out until Rosa scores with a Death Valley Driver for two. Everything breaks down though and Martinez takes out Hayter and Rebel, leaving Rosa to hit an Emerald Flosion for the pin on Baker (Tony: “NO! NO! NO!”) at 8:20.

Rating: C+. Rosa had to get a pin here to set up the big title showdown and make it feel a lot more dramatic. That is going to be the match where it feels like Baker could lose and making it feel more likely here is a good idea. Martinez and Hayter were fine in their roles as well so this was a good step forward to the bigger match.

Jade Cargill isn’t interested in hearing about Tay Conti’s martial arts so Anna Jay has to hold her back.

Kris Statlander doesn’t think much of Leyla Hirsch calling herself a real athlete but Hirsch doesn’t think enough of her to respond. Statlander promises to show a new side of herself that no one has ever seen before.

Wardlow vs. Cezar Bononi

Bononi tries a powerbomb to start and gets powerbombed for the first time. The Powerbomb Symphony finishes for Wardlow at 49 seconds. Longer than I was expecting.

Post match Wardlow breaks up Shawn Spears’ chair shot to Bononi and they stare each other down. Spears thinks better of things.

Here’s the rundown of upcoming shows.

The House of Black takes credit for turning Pentagon into something so evil. Just remember that the house always wins.

MJF comes in to see Wardlow and says that if he wins the ladder match, he can even keep the TNT Title. MJF: “It’s not like you’re going to win it anyway.” Wardlow says he’s too busy making sure MJF is always winning so MJF slaps him in the face. MJF reminds Wardlow that he isn’t a professional wrestler but rather the bodyguard. That means he needs to stay in line or his family is going to be in trouble.

Hangman Page/Dark Order vs. Adam Cole/ReDRagon

Page backs Cole into the corner to start so it’s off to Fish instead. That’s fine with Page, who stomps Fish down into the corner so O’Reilly comes in for a change. Silver strikes him down and it’s the Dark Order flipping O’Reilly over for a crash, followed by a dropkick from Reynolds. O’Reilly manages to pull him into an abdominal stretch but Reynolds is out in a hurry. Page comes back in but gets taken down by a cheap shot.

Cole’s Panama Sunrise is countered into a cradle so they hit the pinfall reversal sequence. The Deadeye is broken up and Cole superkicks him in the leg. Page gets over to the apron but the threat of the Buckshot sends Cole bailing to the floor as we take a break. Back with Silver in trouble but managing to kick his way to freedom. Granted it isn’t a freedom that doesn’t last long though, as O’Reilly pulls him down into a kneebar.

That’s broken up as well and the hot tag brings in Page for the staredown. Cole gets suckered in as well and the slugout is on, with the other four joining in as well. Everything breaks down and Cole hits the brainbuster onto the knee to drop Silver. Page decks Cole, who is right back with an enziguri. Reynolds hits a pop up knee to Cole, who superkicks him twice. The Boom finishes Reynolds off at 12:42.

Rating: B-. Pretty nice main event here and much like the women’s tag, it helped advance the bigger title match at the pay per view. This worked out well and Cole gets to look stronger on the way to Revolution. At the same time, Cole vs. Page isn’t exactly feeling like a major pay per view showdown. Maybe that is because Punk vs. MJF is that awesome, but Cole vs. Page needed all the help it could get.

Post match Page goes after Cole again but gets duct taped to the ropes. That leaves the Dark Order to get beaten down. Cole superkicks Page and drapes the title onto his shoulder to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was quite the weird show, as it had the big announcement to start and then a nearly thirty minute match eating up about a fourth of the show. That put a lot of focus on two things when the rest of Revolution needed a good bit more focus. Rosa vs. Baker needed some more focus over the last few weeks and the main event still doesn’t feel hue. That being said, the Ring of Honor announcement was interesting and the action was all good to very good. Kind of a weird show, but it was more solid stuff, as usual.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Christopher Daniels – Triangle choke
Young Bucks won a casino battle royal last eliminating Top Flight
Thunder Rosa/Mercedes Martinez b. Jamie Hayter/Britt Baker – Emerald Flosion to Baker
Wardlow b. Cezar Bononi – Powerbomb Symphony
Adam Cole/ReDRagon b. Hangman Page/Dark Order – Boom to Reynolds

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